


The hairy claw

by maymay74



Category: Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: F/M, Halloween, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-28
Updated: 2017-11-09
Packaged: 2019-01-06 08:37:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 31
Words: 29,393
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12207672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maymay74/pseuds/maymay74
Summary: It's late October. It's time for Eddie 'The Vampire' to own the airwaves at night like he has done for the last forty-three years with 'The Hairy Claw'. Rosalie is a new hire to the radio show who is set to find the truth about Eddie. What will she find?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This is a preview of my Halloween story. It's already written though I'm still tweaking some parts, so it won't interfere with my other stories.
> 
> I'll start posting on October 6th when I'll explain how long it is and a few more details, just remember it's a BXE pairing though Rosalie is sort of the main character.
> 
> I really hope you'll like it.

"Well good night Seattle! Is that time of the year again. Welcome back to my show. 'The hairy claw'. As you remember I'm Eddie 'The Vampire' Masen and I'm ready to listen to your spooky stories and as a reward, I will put whatever song your heart desires. But first, let's start the night with a little something to get us in the mood if you know what I mean."

The cheerful tones of 'The monster's mash' resounded through the hall of the old side of the radio station.

Rosalie Hale sighed. She didn't know how to feel about being assigned to the night shift. At least she wasn't alone. Seth Clearwater was as bored and tired as her, completely the opposite of Emmett 'Tweety Bird' McCarty. He was the veteran with six years working at KDGM 98.5 FM Moving through the waves for you, as the jingle always said.

"Are you sure we aren't allowed inside?" She asked.

Certainly, most of the shows were transmitted from the new side of the building. The term 'new' was debatable, because it was more than forty years old, but set with the most modern equipment. But when she was hired, she was told that a few old DJs, mainly the old-timers on the sports team, loved to broadcast from the old side as it was more spacious. What she didn't know, until Emmett explained it to her, was that the only show broadcasted from this side currently was this one. And from a closed booth, thus leaving Emmett as the assistant producer only in name, because Eddie 'the vampire' was almost self-sufficient. Still, old-timers like him aren't ones to grasp the importance of Twitter and Facebook, and of course, someone needed to filter the calls. Therefore, Rose was on Twitter duty, Seth on Facebook and Emmett was happily greeting the callers.

"Nah. Eddie likes to work alone. He has an assistant, though I had never seen him or her." Emmett whispered to her.

"So this guy only comes one week to make his show at midnight?" Seth asked.

"A-hum."

"In this old, closed wing?"

"A-hum."

"For how many years?"

"Forty-three. That's why we call him Eddie the vampire. The few times I've seen him, he's pasty white, has that kind of surreal look in his eyes and he looks the same as the first time he came here."

"Bull-shit." Seth murmured between coughs.

"No, I swear. He doesn't look over thirty. And I saw him the first time I got here."

"And before him?"

"Oh no. It's the same, Eddie. I swear."

"You know it's impossible. Maybe it's a job passed between generations, this is probably the grandson of the original Eddie."

"But they look the same and have the same voice. There's a fan club following him since the seventies."

"Nah! It's the product of a well-thought publicity campaign. I saw the ratings, people love to hear him. Of course, the legend helps."

"Wait, a fan club? How old are the fans? Seventy?" Rosalie wondered, she never heard of such thing.

"Of all ages. There's a reason this show is a staple on the station. Hmm, if both of you behave, maybe I'll let you meet him. Then, you'll believe me." Emmett nodded satisfied. He recalled the first time he stepped on the night shift. At the time, his supervisor was old Jared McHuntington. He was the one who explained the legend of Eddie the vampire, and he swore by his mother's grave that Eddie hadn't changed in at least the thirty years he had working at the station. Always coming just for one week on the night shift, no one had seen him out at daylight, hence the nickname.

Rose smiled, hoping there was something else in this legend while Seth huffed annoyed. The night shift was always soo boring.

So they listened to Eddie's night show.

"Well, who do we got here?" Eddie whispered to the mic.

"I'm Shelley." The voice of a mature woman answered.

"So Shelley, do you have a story to share with us?"

"Yes, it happened to my cousin. He once had to stay late at work, he knew he was alone in his office. So, as many men before him, he took out his shoes, loosened his tie and walked around trying to come to grips with the results his papers were displaying..."

Seth got up and started to pace, he wasn't one to stay still in one place for a long time.

"And this still has great ratings? With stories as lame as this one? I mean, in over forty years stories must get repetitive, right?"

Emmett nodded. "Yep. With the first words of the old lady, I knew it would be a ghost story. But you have to consider that people tell stories in different ways, and let me assure you some are really good explaining their stories. Do you remember that film 'The dismembered king'? It was a story someone told here a few years ago. So you see, there always the chance to hear a gem between all those ghost and ghouls stories."

Seth nodded, he loved 'The dismembered king', though he wouldn't know how someone could translate the gore and horror into a spoken story. One needed to see the blood and guts.

Rose on the other hand, with her journalism degree, was thinking that maybe the story behind 'Eddie the vampire' and his legend was worth telling.


	2. Chapter 2

Rosalie Hale, despite what one could assume because of her looks, was one hard working woman with a bright mind. When she mentioned at home she was pursuing a degree in Journalism her parents were sure she would be a hit on TV because of said looks. And Rosalie, stubborns as she is, decided she was going to prove them wrong, choosing to work in places where her looks didn't matter.

At college, she worked at the college radio station. Mind you, she was mostly a 'coffee girl' or helping the technicians.

The past year and a half, she had been working odd jobs to make living when her chance to work at KDGM came. For the last six weeks, she was submerged in the world of a legendary radio station. People running from side to side, phones ringing, and that special buzz when the show you were working on got in the air. So when her boss told her she would work the night shift for a week, Rosalie felt she was failing at her new job. But the woman eased her mind by explaining that it was a really good opportunity to advance in her career. Not anyone had the chance to work with Eddie.

That was four days ago. This night she wasn't sure to see some progress. Sure, it was fun the first hour. While she was finding her way into the show. But now the few calls and almost non-existent tweets were making her doubt the show's success. Emmett told her things will get better the next day, once people realized Eddie was back. Then she will cry for help because she will be so busy she won't have time to go to the girl's room. But for now, she was bored.

"Are we supposed to remain here the whole night? What if I'm feeling hungry? " Rosalie asked, wanting to prompt a way to wander around the building. Anything to keep her mind occupied

Emmett hummed dramatically with a hand on his chin, then he turned on the intercom to call the interior of the booth. "Hey, Eddie"

"Hi, Emmett." Answered a velvety voice, which surprised Rose and Seth. Didn't old guys had a hoarse voice?

"Do you have a problem if we leave for ten minutes? I'd like to give the rookies the tour around this side of the station."

"Sure, no prob. Hi, guys! Welcome to the night shift."

Emmett made a sign for us to answer.

"Hmm, hi Mr. Eddie." Answered Serth with a timid voice.

"Good evening Eddie. It's a pleasure to work with you." Rose was more confident on her greeting. The voice was so soothing, Rosalie realized this guy must have had years and years of experience.

"The song is about to end. Guys, don't let Emmett bully you to buy him something from the vending machine. It has ages and it's probably rotten!" He chuckled along with Emmett.

"See, he's a nice guy. Now let's go. I'll show you the remnants of KDGM's old glory."

xxx

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi!
> 
> Well, let me explain a few things about this story:
> 
> I'll post daily (one or two short chapters) until the 31st. Then there are two little outtakes, just to tie two loose ends.
> 
> At the end of each chapter, I'll share with you a few recommendations about horror films. I'll try to avoid the most famous ones. I'd love to hear your favorites too.
> 
> Now, the story is about a radio show (Curious data: There's a real 'hairy hand' show that has been going on for years, and it was the inspiration for the fic). So while I'm telling you the story, there will come five other stories told by the public (they're short and won't interfere with the main story, they'll be just calls from the public).
> 
> And lastly, I'm always for a HEA. So I'll tell you from the beginning: Because the main story of Bella and Edward happened in 1974, I swear they are together and happy but I can't promise you they are living-breathing creatures (I can't tell you more, but it's a happy ending).
> 
> So, if you're still with me, I'll see you tomorrow.
> 
> The recommendations of the day: Dark Disney!
> 
> Yep, before Halloweentown, in the 70s and 80s, Disney did creepy movies.
> 
> The watcher in the woods (1980): When a family moves to a country home, the young girls experience strange happenings that have a link to a occult event years past.
> 
> What can I say? One daughter seems sort of possessed, the other one sees weird things. One of my favorite movies ever.
> 
> Something wicked this way comes (1983): In a small American town, a diabolical circus and its demonic proprietor prey on the townsfolk.
> 
> There a lot of scenes at the fair that will scare you. Just creepy.
> 
> The black hole (1979): A research vessel finds a missing ship, commanded by a mysterious scientist, on the edge of a black hole.
> 
> Hmm, there's just one word: Maximilian. That robot gave me nightmares. But I was so happy with my Black Hole lunch box as a kid :)


	3. Chapter 3

Emmett rushed to the door, while he was putting on his jacket.

"Come on, rookies! Put your sweaters on. It gets really cold at night."

Emmett wasn't joking. The hallways were freezing.

"Man, this looks straight out of a horror movie!" Seth joked.

He wasn't so far from the truth. Empty hallways barely illuminated by the few working lamps on the ceiling, doors hanging half-screwed to the walls, cracked windows about to break because of the fall winds. This wing was abandoned for a long time and it showed it.

"It could look worst. The janitor told me he cleans every Sunday."

Rosalie just shook her head. "Why do they keep it this way? Isn't it a waste of money?"

"It's because of the owners. I heard a rumor that Mr. Black wanted to turn this area into a museum,"

"Wait, Mr. Black? I thought..." Rosalie was very disappointed. She didn't know the story of the station, what kind of journalist doesn't inquire the story of the company where she's working at? And she wanted to get the truth about Eddie 'The Vampire' like this? What a shame! So, Rosalie decided to grill Emmett for answers, at least the ones he could provide. "Emmett, who owns the station?"

He was about to open a door but stopped to ponder how to answer.

"Well, the radio station was originally owned by an old folk who went bankrupt in the 50's, or was the 60's? Anyway, there were two brothers, William and Ephraim Black, working at the station who got money from an inheritance. William's dream was to own a radio station and turned out he had very good ideas so when they bought it they turned the station into a success. Then Ephraim moved on to start a gazette, and later he bought two magazines. So, William remains as the sole owner of the KDGM. But as you know, he died a few years ago, letting his two daughters as co-owners. The thing is, well, the rumor is that William wanted to build a museum about KDGM's history, and after he passed, one daughter wanted to follow his steps and the other wanted to rebuild this wing and sell it. So they came into an impasse and now I guess it depends on who dies first. I mean, those women are in their seventies at least!"

Seth rolled his eyes, it was cold, he was bored, and they promised him a tour. "So are we going?"

"Oh, right. Well, we're here." Emmett opened the door and got into a wide room. "This used to be the planning room. My first boss, Jared, told me stories about the meetings they used to have here when this side was still functioning." Emmett smiled wistfully. "

The room was enormous though the signs of abandonment were obvious: Paint scraping from the walls, the lamps were almost falling from the ceiling and the glass wall that separated it from the surrounding offices was cracked in many places. Still, many pictures hung around showing glimpses to happier times. Though it was difficult to get a glimpse of some of the pictures with so much dust plastered over the frame.

Emmett jumped and walked to one corner. "Look, guys, you still want to meet Eddie?" He pulled a wad of tissues from his pocket and scrubbed the dirt of the last frame.

"Voilá! Here it is. KDGM 1974's team in all their polyester glory."

Sure enough, the picture showed around twenty people smiling to the camera. Some were old, some in their thirties, but what shocked Rosalie was the group of very young guys and girls with big smiles and eyes full of dreams. Like that short girl with the black hair; she couldn't be older than twenty!

But Seth got his eyes in something entirely different. "Look at that hot mamma! Even with the bell-bottom pants, you can admire her legs."

Rosalie turned to look at the woman. She was a buxom raven-haired woman, with a tight short top displaying her attributes. Wow! Despite the vanishing coloring of the picture, you could see she had very red lips.

Emmett laughed at Seth's antics, then counted the people on the picture until he got to the bombshell, then went to lowest part of the frame, where the names of the people posing were listed.

"Hmm... here it says... Carmen S. Black. Oh, right! I know who she was. She was the third or fourth wife of Ephraim Black, the other brother. Here they are, William and Ephraim Black." He pointed to the older men standing right at the front of the group. "Aaand, right here," he pointed to a handsome man at the left side of the group. "This is Eddie 'The Vampire' Masen."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For today I'm going to suggest one of my favorite horror films, that sadly I haven't watched in over fifteen years:
> 
> The Sentinel (1977) Not ready for marriage, a fashion model moves into an unbelievably cheap and nice Brooklyn Heights apartment, where weird occurrences turn into a much more frightening turn of events.
> 
> Where to start with this one? Great actors in small parts, a blind priest living on the top floor always sitting by the window, then her weird neighbors, . It's a great story that sadly, didn't get the recognition it deserves. If you have the chance, watch it.


	4. Chapter 4

What Rosalie noticed first was that Eddie was a very handsome man. Tall and lean, with broad shoulders and a mischievous smile. His tousled mane appeared to be not quite reddish and his eyes were bright and clear. He was holding the waist of a beautiful young woman, but his other hand was making bullhorns to the guy standing next to him, so they were probably horsing around while the picture was taken.

"And he still looks the same?" Seth wondered.

"Yep."

"No way! He's probably bald by now and has a potbelly." Seth joked.

Emmett pointed to the copper-haired man. "This is Eddie. Legend says he was a hit since the beginning. He had the morning show and was funny and snarky. With those looks, he probably would fair well at TV but the radio was his heart. Anyway... we need to get back. I promise to give you a complete tour after our shift ends."

Rosalie didn't waste time, she took out her phone and took a snapshot of the picture. This was her first step to find about 'Eddie'.

xxx

By the end of the shift, the team was working like a well-oiled machine, meanwhile, Eddie was regaling the audience with the story of a saucy vampire with a penchant for strong women who usually ended on him beaten up and hungry.

"And that's all for tonight, ladies and gentlemen. I'll be back at midnight again for another round of scary stories, amusing tales of the occult, classic songs of your choice. And remember, tune in at midnight. I'll be waiting."

We clapped now that KDGM's jingle was on, and the annoying song of the morning news blared through our speakers.

The intercom buzzed, letting us know Eddie wanted to talk to us.

"Thank guys for an amazing show. Let's hope it works this way tomorrow. Now, I had a little favor to ask. Please tell the janitor to not come inside for the week. I'm just a messy fucker and I like to keep things in a certain way. I promise I'll leave it all clean before I leave."

"Don't worry. I know the deal." Emmett answered.

"That, and could you ask him where he put those packets for the stories? You remember, the t-shirts with keychains for the good stories?"

Emmett burst out laughing. "Don't worry, I'll find them." Then he turned to Rose and Seth. "We always give a reward for the five best stories. Hmm, guys, would you mind if I give you the complete tour when you come for the next shit? I need to find Louie the janitor."

xxx

When her shift was over, Rosalie went back home, ready to work on getting anything on Eddie. Thanks to the picture, she now knew his real name was Edward Masen. Sadly, she only found a sparse mention in one list of radio shows airing for more than ten years. She closed the page and then loaded the picture to her laptop. It looked more grainy once enhanced, but now she could read the name of the others. There was one name that seemed familiar. Jasper Whitlock. One of her teachers back in college was named Marie Whitlock, so maybe they could be related. When she looked for Marie and found a little biography in her blog she knew she found him: 'standing legacy in radio... daughter of renowned radio personality Jasper Whitlock... Bingo! Now, she just had to get in touch with her old teacher. After a couple of hours of sleep, of course. It was still dark outside, time to get a few hours of sleep.

"Edward Masen, I'm going to find the truth about you!" With that happy thought, Rosalie closed her eyes and sleep.

xxx

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For today, I'm going for a classic:
> 
> Night of the demon (1957, still in black an white!) Dr. John Holden ventures to London to attend a paranormal psychology symposium with the intention to expose devil cult leader Julian Karswell. Holden is a skeptic and does not believe in Karswell's power. Nonetheless, he accepts an invitation to stay at Karswell's estate, along with Joanna Harrington, niece of Holden's confidant who was electrocuted in a bizarre automobile accident. Karswell secretly slips a parchment into Holden's papers that might possibly be a death curse. Recurring strange events finally strike fear into Holden, who believes that his only hope is to pass the parchment back to Karswell to break the demonic curse.
> 
> We may find the demon a bit funny today, but please ignore his cheesy aspect and focus in the eerie atmosphere.


	5. Chapter 5

After rolling around her bed for thirty minutes, Rosalie realized she wouldn't get any sleep. She was still excited because of her little connection with Mr. Jasper Whitlock. So armed with a good cup of coffee and her trusted laptop, she decided to get a closer look to the other people in the picture. At least until it was a decent time to call Marie Whitlock.

The people around Eddie were young and all were laughing. She was glad to notice that the man beside Eddie was the one and only Jasper Whitlock, so probably they were close. Wow! Jasper Whitlock was giving Rose a severe case of hair-envy. Those blond curls seemed so soft. Then she giggled. She was aware of the more relaxed code of clothing within a radio station, but between Eddie and Jasper's manes and Carmen Black's outfit, she was sure the 74's team was a riot. Then she observed the proud Black brothers, William was standing with a beaming smile while Ephraim was brooding. But wait! There standing on the opposite corner was a handsome man. Tall, with dark hair and hardened features. The man was glaring at Eddie. How come they preserved this picture and not one with everyone smiling? Still, she looked at the bottom and easily found his name: Jacob Black. Huh? Another Black? Well, something more to investigate. She made sure to make a note in her pad to look what was Jacob Black's problem.

xxx

Rosalie was lucky enough to get Ms. Marie Whitlock to invite her for coffee that same morning. She came to the realization, that for her plan to work, she needed to get the story before the 31st, or Eddie the vampire would get lost for another year. So with her fingers crossed she called Marie and got a date, for coffee early in the morning.

"You know, I'll never get tired of these. Too bad they have so much fat." Maria said between bites of her donut. Their reunion until now went about catching up and a few pleasantries. "So what made you call me? I'm pretty flattered but I know there's something else bugging you."

Rosalie always admired that straightforward focus Marie had. Something she always tried to imitate. So, in lieu of some idle exchange of funny common past experiences, she decided to come clean. Who knows? Maybe Rosalie could find a friend to share her plans.

"Well, as you know, I started to work on KDGM."

"Woo-hoo!" Marie hollered. "I was so sure you would make it." Then she patted Rose's hand making her blush.

"I was assigned to the night shift for this week, there's a show that goes from midnight to five in the morning and it will only air this week, previous to Halloween. It's named 'The hairy claw'."

Marie smiled. "Ah, of course. The DJ used to be Dad's co-host. The guy was so handsome, it was a shame." Then she got lost in memories. "I'm talking about forty years ago. I wasn't been born either, so I never met the guy, but he and his wife were close to my parents. But then the fire happened."

"Fire?"

"You never heard of the fire at KDGM?" Marie turned to look at Rosalie who denied any knowledge of the fire. "Hmm, well, it happened long ago, my parents just got married around that time. I suppose the fire made the news, so you may find a lot if you do your research." And she gave Rose a pointed look. "But what I know is that the Blacks were expanding, bought the neighboring building and set it with the latest equipment. It was the day of the opening of the new building's side, the old one was almost empty. Somehow someone blew something, I'm not really sure. My parents were injured and I heard some people died. It was sort of chaotic but Mr. Black managed to keep it quiet." Marie bit her donut again. "Anyway, I don't think you're here to listen about an old incident."

"Well, as a matter of fact, I am interested. See, they still claim that the DJ is Eddie the Vampire. Your Dad's old friend?"

Marie laughed. "Anything for the ratings. Look, I'm only aware of him, because he was a good friend of the family, so we have lots of pictures. But after the fire, something else happened and my father cut all his ties to the man. To be honest, I thought he was dead."

Rosalie shrugged her shoulders. "Supposedly it's the same man. And wait, they say he looks the same, that's why they call him 'The vampire'."

Marie laughed. "You're joking."

"Nope. At least, that's what they say."

"I told you, anything for the ratings." Marie quickly took a sip from her coffee. "Dad said that after the fire, Mr. Black's approach to business changed vastly, so he and my mother left the station. Well, that's what he told me after my first job, so I didn't get discouraged when things didn't go the way I wanted." She took another sip. "You know, maybe that's when they came with this vampire idea. Forty years is a long time, how long did you say this thing has been going on?"

"Forty-three years."

"Oh, my! There's no way the man is, wait, you say is the same Eddie that was my dad's buddy? He must be sixty-five at least. But it's radio, all you need is his voice."

Rosalie chuckled. "Nope. The rumor is that he still looks the same."

Marie burst out laughing. "You know that can't be true."

"I know! And then, the guy broadcast from a closed booth." Rosalie was pretty sure the mystery was just a scam, and Marie's eyes told her the same.

"Of course it is closed. I'm pretty sure once in a while they'll let one of you 'see' him," she made air quotes with her fingers, "that person will swear it's the same man, but it's part of the job. In ten years another group will come and the process will repeat." Marie was shaking her head. "What people do for ratings!"

An hour later, Rosalie left; she was skipping over the sidewalk, happy because Marie convinced her father to talk to Rosalie. This turned out to be a fruitful morning after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, for today I'm going for a funny recent film:
> 
> Tucker and Dale vs. Evil (2010) Two lovable West Virginian hillbillies are headed to their vacation cabin to drink some beer, do some fishin', and have a good time. But when they run into a group of preppy college kids who assume from their looks that they must be in-bred, chainsaw wielding killers, Tucker & Dale's vacation takes a bloody and hilarious turn for the worse.
> 
> All I'm going to say is: if you don't mind gory films, watch it. It will make you laugh. Really.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry! A few technical problems (namely, I didn't have internet service at home) prevented me to post. So to compensate, I'll post the three chapters from Tuesday, Wednesday and today in two parts. Here's the first one:

When Rose got back from her talk with Marie, she was exhausted. She finally got to sleep, though she still wanted to get up on time to go to the library. She really wanted to find out anything on that fire.

xxx

The library was almost empty, whether it was because of the cold wind or the hour. Rose was dejected to find only two articles about the fire at KDGM. The first one was a scarce mention of an 'accident' in the Seattle times, where the fire apparently was quickly contained and only affected the lobby of the old side of the building. No mention of injured or deaths.

The other one, from Ephraim Black's gazette by the way, showed a bit more information though it was overshadowed by the tremendous amount of pictures about the opening of the new wing. Rosalie was giggling, thinking of how much things changed but how they're still the same. She found very interesting attire choices but at the same time, laughed at the crowd standing around the red carpet. It was clear that people yesterday went wild with celebrities just like they do today. The information of the fire was relegated to the second to last page. 'While they were partying a fire erupted at an abandoned office', next they showed a small picture of a black wall with trash surrounding it. 'Luckily the fire department arrived', yadda-yadda, 'just mild injured', wait. That's all? Rose re-read the whole paper again, but there wasn't another mention of the fire. Worst, they didn't mention Eddie or Marie's father at all. Weren't they employees at the time? The buxom woman of the picture on Rose's phone appeared in a few pictures, looking flashy and beautiful along with another woman with an impressive updo that probably used enough hairspray to cause a hole to the ozone layer. 'The stars of the mid-morning show 'Shh, It's our secret': Carmen Black and Esme Cullen'.

Well, Rose still hoped to find more after her talk to Marie's father, Jasper Whitlock; or maybe have the chance to find more this night at work.

xxx

Rose plans to continue her search for the truth about Eddie were thwarted. Emmett didn't lie when he said they were about to get busy once people realized Eddie was back. Call after call, hundreds of tweets. She barely had the chance to get a soda from the vending machine!

By three in the morning, she was tired of reading how much people loved the stories (didn't they hear the same as her?), how nice Eddie's voice was, worst, how many women (and a few men) wanted a date with Eddie. At least she knew how to answer those. Emmett told her that Eddie was a happily married man, but Rose thoguht it was all crap to keep away the more tenacious fans. At least this night she wasn't bored.

xxx

Eddie welcomed a man, who started with a funny story about a ghost in search of justice, but such a bad luck that somehow he managed to make everything worst. Young girls in trouble, bullies that needed to learn a lesson, kids who needed advice; the poor ghost had the best intentions but managed to turn everything around for those who he wanted to help. The ghost then met a woman who in her crazy ramblings helped him to right his wrongs, and in turn, help all the people he hurt. The man who was telling the story was so funny that had Emmett and Seth in stitches. Rosalie couldn't deny she laughed with some of the poor ghost mishaps.

So when the man finished, Eddie, who was also laughing, asked what everybody thought about the story. He opened the intercom and Emmett began to clap. Soon Seth and Rose joined him.

"Well, it seems we got our first prize of the week. Please, don't hang up because we will take your personal information." Eddie told to the man, "And because you really made us smile, you can choose two songs."

"Hmm, I'd like to hear 'Don't stop believing' from Journey, and 'Somebody to love' from Queen."

"Well, you asked and here it is..."

The notes of Journey's song blared, and Emmett held the call to gather the man's information.

"Hi, guys!" The intercom bummed with Eddie's voice.

"Oh, hi Eddie!" Rosalie went to sit by the table where the intercom was located. "Emmett is still talking to the last man."

"Oh, well we have time. How are you doing? Do you like working the night shift?"

"I'm really liking it here. So different to my previous job."

"Really?"

"I was assigned to Beth's late afternoon show. She got me gathering data for the subject of the day, which I love but I'm finding quite entertaining to interact with the audience."

"It's kind of magical, right?"

"Yeah, I never expected it."

"Darn, the song is about to end. Could you please ask Emmett about the packets with the promotional trinkets we will be awarding this year? I just gave away the first one and I don't have an idea of what I'm supposed to be giving."

"Sure."

"Tell him to get them at the end of the show."

Rosalie gasped. Could it be possible she finally got her chance to meet Eddie on the flesh?

xxx

"And that's all for tonight, ladies and gentlemen. I'll be back at midnight again for another round of scary stories, amusing tales of the occult, classic songs of your choice. And remember, tune in at midnight. I'll be waiting."

Just like the day before, everybody clapped then the station's jingle was on as a prelude for the morning news.

Emmett pushed the button on the intercom and called Eddie.

"I got them and you won't believe what they sent."

"Really? Well, don't keep me waiting, please come. And bring the rookies."

On the inside, Rosalie was making cartwheels and waving pom-poms. She was about to meet Eddie. So she didn't notice when the door to the booth opened, while Emmett and Seth carried two big cardboard boxes.

"Rose, bring the last one please!" One of them hollered before getting inside.

She ran and got the small box in her arms and walked into the booth.

It wasn't what she expected. It was as well equipped as the new ones, it just was a larger booth with two tables and four chairs probably for when more than one DJ were working.

"Put it on the table over that corner," Seth told her, while he was busy trying to open the one he brought. Though Emmett was faster with his box and pulled another smaller box.

"This one is already open." He passed the box to Eddie, who was standing to his right.

"Wow!" He pulled a t-shirt and a stuffed wolf, the mascot of the Black's companies, from the box. "This year they went all out. Oh, more goodies and a travel cup. A vast improvement to last year's dull t-shirt and keychain."

Rosalie almost fainted. Eddie 'the vampire' was a tall man, and he looked just as handsome as in the picture.

The talk about the prizes went on, but Rosalie couldn't get her eyes apart from Eddie. Her brain couldn't figure how it was possible for him to look the same.

"So officially, the 31st, before we bid farewell to the show for a year, we name the best five stories. Those get the packages. Now, we usually like to have a few more, sometimes more stories deserve a prize." Eddie was explaining.

"But last few years they were so cheap. We got only five and the prizes were so lame."

"And how do you decide?" Seth wondered.

"Well, Emmett is supposed to take all the names and phone numbers of our story-tellers. Then we see if people compliment certain stories in facebook or twitter. Then we choose the more popular, but you can tell as soon as you hear them. One can tell the difference."

"Wow. So 'the dismembered king' was a winner?"

"Right, and one of the reasons why we ask their names and phone number. That story almost cost us a lawsuit. Until we found the original man that told the story and who was the one stealing the idea." Eddie winked at Seth and took a seat.

Rosalie knew she had to take the chance to get Eddie to talk about himself. By looking at Seth and Emmett, she knew she would never get a word out of Eddie with them around. The only thing that came to her mind was to convince him to have a coffee with her, so they could talk privately.

She walked to Eddie and slowly leaned down to whisper the invitation to him accidentally making her ample cleavege almost spill out of its confine,

"I was thinking if we could..? Ouch!"

Out of nowhere, a magazine came flying and fell on her head.

Emmett and Seth looked around, but couldn't find where the magazine came from, and luckily, Rosalie wasn't injured. Just shocked.

"Are you fine Rosalie? Sorry for my mess. That magazine probably fell from... my pile on that corner." Eddie tried to amend.

But Rose knew it. Someone threw the magazine at her, the question was who?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The movies for the day are a suggestion by sullhach that I'm sure you all will enjoy:
> 
> Carnival of souls (1962) Mary Henry is enjoying the day by riding around in a car with two friends. When challenged to a drag, the women accept, but are forced off of a bridge. It appears that all are drowned, until Mary, quite some time later, amazingly emerges from the river. After recovering, Mary accepts a job in a new town as a church organist, only to be dogged by a mysterious phantom figure that seems to reside in an old run-down pavilion. It is here that Mary must confront the phantom.
> 
> Scary film that makes up wonderfully for its lack of budget by creating and eerie atmosphere.
> 
> Event horizon (1997) In the year 2047 a group of astronauts are sent to investigate and salvage the long lost starship "Event Horizon". The ship disappeared mysteriously 7 years before on its maiden voyage and with its return comes even more mystery as the crew of the "Lewis and Clark" discover the real truth behind its disappearance and something even more terrifying.
> 
> Triangle (2009) The story revolves around the passengers of a yachting trip in the Atlantic Ocean who, when struck by mysterious weather conditions, jump to another ship only to experience greater havoc on the open seas.
> 
> This one, I can't tell you anything or I would spoil the experience. Great film and a bonus: A very young Liam Hemsworth ;)


	7. Chapter 7

After the magazine incident, Rose went home. It was really early and all she wanted was her bed. Five hours later, she was up and ready to continue with her quest for the truth. She got ready for the day, with hopes to find more after talking to Jasper Whitlock. But once she looks at the time, she realized it was too early for her date. Not wanting to waste time she decided to wander around the old wing, maybe she could find another picture, something else to clue her in. And at this hour in the morning, Emmett and Seth were probably sleeping at home. She could go and walk around at her leisure.

Once there, she went through the whole first floor without finding anything interesting. It was frustrating!

But then she saw an older woman walking slowly through the hallway, entirely distracted talking over her phone. Rosalie gasped. Wasn't this area restricted?

"Right, I promise I'll be there. I'm just taking an hour for lunch." The old woman huffed. "My, for sure. You know, I have the bad habit of eating. Some may say it's necessary for living."

The woman turned to the left and Rosalie wasn't sure how to proceed. Should she warn the old woman about this area? Should she let her roam free?

"Meh. You may be older, but not wiser. I'm having lunch and then, I'm going back to deal with that mess. It's my last word. Yeah, yeah. Ok, I'll call you later."

The woman hung up and looked up to find a shocked Rosalie.

"Sorry, you must be new. I just like to come from time to time." Noticing how Rosalie still didn't know what to say, the older woman got closer. "I'm Rebecca Black."

Rebecca Black? Of course! After William Black's death, his daughters took control of the company.

"I'm Rosalie Hale." Rose shook Rebecca's hand. "Sorry, I just started working at this wing and never see anyone around."

The old woman smiled.

"Yeah, it's sort of creepy." Both shared a glance around and burst into laughter. Certainly, the entire building was abandoned but at plain daylight, it wasn't so bad. "Let me share a secret with you. Come."

Rebecca guided Rose through a maze of hallways and closed rooms only to reach one last door. "This used to be beside my office a long time ago, but I like to come from time to time. Now, promise me you'll never tell."

Rose nodded and Rebecca showed her how to open the stuck lock. It was only a matter of lifting a little the door and push with force. Rosalie gasped. It was a hidden terrace, full of potted plants and flowers. There were a bench and a little table. Everything was in top shape, nothing like the rest of the building.

"This is my oasis. I come here when I need to get away for a while. You know, sometimes people just get on my nerves, or I'm too stressed. As you can see there's no phone here so no one can reach me." Rebecca widened her arms.

Rosalie twirled around amazed. There were flowers blooming everywhere! "This is wonderful! How do you keep it looking this good?"

"Oh, I always had a green thumb. And I hate closed spaces. My office in the new wing suffocates me so I like to come here to decompress." Rebecca said from a corner, where she was filling a watering can. "Take this, help me water the left side and we'll talk. I know you weren't supposed to be wandering after your shift either." Rebecca gave Rosalie a pointed look.

"Hmm, well." Rosalie was fast to take the watering can and started to work, Rebecca burst out laughing.

" Don't get scared! I was just joking. Still, if you share with someone my little secret I'll get very angry." Rebecca then sat on the little bench that was behind her. "If you only knew all the stories this place could tell. You don't have any idea how many times I caught couples making out here. I'm pretty sure a few babies were conceived right over this bench." She whispered conspiratorily.

Rosalie still didn't know what to do. Rebecca seemed really nice but her words were confusing her. Was she joking? Was she getting mad? Then Rose decided to be bold, what was the worst that could happen?

"My boss gave us the tour around here yesterday and I happened to notice an old picture." Rose took out her phone to show Rebecca the picture. "This is supposed to be the host of the show I'm working on." She pointed to Eddie.

Rebecca smiled but it didn't reach her eyes.

"I knew Eddie. A flirt, certainly." Rebecca turned to look at her, and Rosalie could swear the woman was young again. "He could charm a nun out of her panties like this" Rebecca snapped her fingers. "But he wasn't a womanizer. He just loved to flirt. It was in his nature, that was until,"

"Until?"

Rebecca began to sob.

"Until her." She pointed to the beautiful woman Eddie was holding in the picture. "Isabella Swan. The one who tamed him."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So finally, someone mentions Bella.
> 
> For today I'm going for an old anthology:
> 
> Dead of night (1945) Architect Walter Craig is summoned to a country house on the pretense of acquiring work. Once there he meets several guests, all of whom are familiar to him because of their strange appearance in a recurring dream he has experienced. Each guest then entertains the group with a tale about an uncanny or inexplicable event in his or her life.
> 
> Hmm, let me just say: one of the stories is about a ventriloquist dummy. The film is a true classic.


	8. Chapter 8

"Until her." She pointed to the beautiful woman Eddie was holding in the picture. "Isabella Swan. The one who tamed him."

"Isabella?" Rosalie was confused.

Firstly, Rebecca was happy reminiscing old times but just a look at this Isabella and puff! She began to cry. This woman seemed to jump from one emotion to another in the blink of an eye.

"Sorry. It's a really sad story. And she was so close to us. Like a very little sister." Rebecca's finger was caressing the tiny image of her beloved Isabella.

Rosalie now had a thousand questions but she was tactful enough to wait. Meanwhile, Rebecca's sobs were fading, but she wasn't as talkative as before.

"If you want me to leave," Rosalie stood and waited for Rebecca's direction, not knowing if she should stay or if she should comfort the old woman.

"No, no." Rebecca cleaned her nose with a tissue. "You just brought back so many memories. But it isn't bad to remember, no. I just have to get a hold of myself, I'm sure you'll like the story of Chabela and Lalo." She chuckled. "That's how Carmen used to call them and the nickname stuck. Chabela is how they call Isabellas in Mexico, and Lalo was for Eddie. He hated it, so we loved to tease him calling him Lalo." Somehow Rebecca was now calm and collected. "Why don't we have a cup of tea for now? If you come back here tomorrow I'll tell you the whole story. Today I don't feel like I could."

xxx

Rosalie left the little terrace with a newly found step on her pace. Second day and she was finding so much about Eddie! Firstly, she just confirmed he was a real person, not a character created for the sake of the show. She knew that the man at the station really looked like the one in the picture. And now she had a lunch date with no other than Rebecca Black! Just to imagine all the stories she knew, all the events she watched. Because we are talking about fifty years around the station. Rebecca told Rosalie that she's seventy-one and her sister Rachel is seventy-two. And while they should be retired, they still controlled the majority of the decisions in KDGM. Last but not least, Rosalie was sure if someone knew the truth about Eddie it was Rebecca.

Now on with her meeting with Jasper Whitlock.

Rosalie found her way through a long road full of elegant but old houses. She was fifteen minutes early so she took the time to admire the area. She smiled remembering how the man sounded quite surprised on the phone as to why Rosalie would want to talk to him after all these years, but he still agreed. But maybe it was because he didn't seem able to deny anything to Marie.

The house was standing in the middle of a posh street with large stone walls covered in vines. Rosalie straightened her back and walked with certainty to the gated door.

"May I help you?" a grave voice answered her ring from a speaker.

"I have an appointment with Mr. Jasper Whitlock."

The door creaked and a buzz confirmed they granted Rose access. She was nervous as this house didn't seem as Marie at all. While she knew Marie's family was well off, she never imagined this kind of splendor.

The paved road to the main entrance was surrounded by well-cared flower beds, intricate bushes and even a little fountain with a stone cherub spitting water from its mouth. So cliché! When she finally reached the main door, this was already open, and the oddest image welcomed her: an old man in worn jeans and boots with blond curly hair that reached his shoulders.

"So, you're Rosalie, hmm? Marie told me a lot about you. I'm Jasper Whitlock. Come in, please."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we finally met Jasper. What does he have to say?
> 
> Today I'm going to suggest two films:
> 
> Burnt offerings (1976) Ben Rolf, his wife Marian and their son David visit a country manor for renting to spend summer vacation. They are welcomed by the weird siblings Roz Allardyce and Arnold Allardyce that offer the mansion for nine hundred-dollar only for the whole summer. The only condition is to feed their mother Ms. Allardyce that lives a recluse in the attic three times a day. They move to the house with Ben's Aunt Elizabeth and soon Marian becomes obsessed for Ms. Allardyce and the house. Meanwhile, evil things happen to the Rolf family and Ben feels that the house is absorbing their life forces. After the death of Ms. Allardyce, Ben decides to live the manor but he realizes they are trapped in the real estate. What is happening to the family?
> 
> One of my favorites 'haunted house' films, and the star of so many nightmares when I was a teenager.
> 
> Let's scare Jessica to death (1971) A woman released from a mental hospital moves to an old countryside house with her husband and a friend to recuperate, but begins having strange visions and experiences around the property. Is there really something strange happening, or is it all in her in mind?
> 
> This one has a slow pace, don't expect jump scares or great effects. But it has something that stays with you and makes you look behind your back. I watch it for the first time when I was pregnant, alone at home, in plain daylight. It scared me so much.
> 
> xxx
> 
> I was thinking to add a list with the trailers of the films. Do you think is a good idea?


	9. Chapter 9

This was Jasper Whitlock? She recalled the handsome man from the grainy picture and sighed wondering how much people can change in over forty years.

The man moved to give her a chance to come in, and he kicked the door closed. Then slowly, with a limp guided her to a family sitting room.

"Come on, take a seat. Would you like some water or a soda? What do you kids drink these days?" He limped through to the room in direction of a side door.

"Water will be fine. Thanks." Rosalie didn't know what to make of Mr. Whitlock. He seemed rough around the edges, but his eyes lightened up when he mentioned Marie.

Mr. Whitlock was back with a tray with the glass of water, another glass with a greenish liquid and a plate with crackers and cheese.

"Here," he handed her the water and very carefully tried to maneuver to set the tray on a coffee table. Rosalie, seen him struggling, was fast to take the tray and ease him into an old-fashioned armchair.

Finally, now that both were seated, Mr. Whitlock with his weird drink in hand too, he cleared his throat and began to question Rosalie.

"Marie mentioned that you are working at KDGM," to which Rosalie nodded, "I hope she mentioned that our leaving the station wasn't in the best terms." He almost whispered the last words.

"She mentioned you weren't quite comfortable with the way Mr. Black was running things."

Jasper interrupted her to cackle.

"Quite comfortable? Ha,ha,ha. See my legs? This limp? It happened the night of the fire. My wife got blind that night too. And all that old jackass was thinking were ways to clean the good name of the station!"

"Didn't he help you? Pay the hospital bills?"

Rosalie didn't know much about the fire, someone really made an effort to keep the details hidden. All she knew was what Marie told her, that it was an accident that left a few injured and sadly someone died.

Jasper shook his head. "Not all of us could be bought. While our insurance was enough to cover everything, what he wanted from us was disgusting. So, no he didn't help us. We left and, thank God, we found a better job somewhere else."

Wow. There was a contrast in what Jasper was telling to the sweet old lady Rosalie met. There are always two sides of every story, she just had to find out the truth.

"What did he ask you?"

"To sell my soul." Jasper chuckled. "He asked for changes in our, my show, that I didn't feel were appropriate. But I guess I was the only one who didn't agree."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, the man once I thought was my best friend, betrayed me and sided with the devil. He sold our show and stabbed me in the back."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What is Jasper talking about? What did Eddie do? And Jasper... why is he so bitter?
> 
> I'd like to thank today's suggestions to MooMoo:
> 
> Night of the creeps (1986) In 1959, an alien experiment crashes to earth and infects a fraternity member. They freeze the body, but in the modern day, two geeks pledging a fraternity accidentally thaw the corpse, which proceeds to infect the campus with parasites that transform their hosts into killer zombies.
> 
> Warning sign (1985) In an ultra-secret laboratory for the developing of biological weapons, covered as "Biotek", a research center for agriculture, a serious accident occurs, spreading a sinister bacteria in the laboratory. The security guard of the complex closes and seals the building, with all the personnel inside, making very difficult the struggle for survival, not to mention the actions that the relatives of the enclosed people are thinking to do.
> 
> Night of the comet (1984) Two sisters, high school seniors in the early 1980s, awaken one morning to blood red skies and the realization that the human race has been wiped out. This becomes apparent that anyone who was not surrounded by steel when Earth recently passed through the tail of a comet has been reduced to a pile of red dust (the trace elements of human chemical makeup). They encounter a friendly truck driver and take over the airwaves at a local radio station in an attempt to get help. Unfortunately, they attract the attention of a group of scientists who knew what the effects of the comet would be. They hide underground in a steel laboratory but carelessly left the vents open. Now as various survivors of the comet who were only partially surrounded by steel are decaying into flesh-hungry zombies, the scientists are attempting to come up with a vaccine made of the blood of people who were not infected by the comet. Thus the trio must fight their way past not only roving packs of the cannibal zombies but also outsmart a pack of scientists desperate not to become that way themselves.
> 
> Ghoulies (1984) A young man and his girlfriend move into an old mansion home, where he becomes possessed by a desire to control ancient demons.


	10. Chapter 10

One hour later, Rosalie said goodbye to Jasper. Yes, Jasper, not Mr. Whitlock. It seems that once she changed the topic, and talked about herself and her struggles to land a job, Jasper changed his tune and told Rose amusing stories about his own struggles. The man had wit and charisma. Rosalie was sure he was an excellent DJ. But some of his words troubled her. After the fire, apparently, Jasper got out of the hospital to find out his morning show was canceled and turned into a weekend variety show and that his best friend and co-host had already agreed to end their show on the condition that he was able to make his own show, what she now knew as 'The hairy claw'.

Rose couldn't forget the pain she saw in Jasper's eyes when he said 'Even after what he lost in the fire, he made a deal with William Black!'. Could it be possible that Eddie was so callous? Oh, and the worst, Eddie gain the nickname 'The Vampire' AFTER the fire. Before he was known as Eddie Masen, just like that. Rosalie wondered if the nickname came only as a publicity stunt.

As Rosalie was leaving through the paved road, she heard someone calling her.

"Psst, psst!"

Rosalie turned around, finding an older woman seated behind a rose bush.

"Come! Hurry!"

Rosalie walked to her, rounding the extremely tall rose bush. The petite woman was perfectly hidden, despite wearing a brilliant purple tunic and a gigantic pair of dark glasses that covered half her face.

"I didn't think he would walk you to the door. He's overprotective, but he needs to stop."

Rosalie gasped when she realized this woman was Jasper's wife, Alice. And she shocked Rosalie more when she took away her glasses. Alice really was blind!

"Yeah, I know. Is the one thing that the fire left me. It didn't happen right away though, but it was inevitable. Anyway, I heard you're working with Eddie, uh?"

"Well, yes. Though I only saw him once, or the one they make look like Eddie because..."

"Because he's young. I know. Jasper thinks Edward agreed to William Black's scheme, but I know better." She tapped her temple. "See, sometimes I talk with them."

"Them?"

"Yep, with Eddie and Bella."

Rosalie wondered if this Bella was the same who make Rebecca cry. Then she began to worry about the mental health of the petite woman.

"I know, he thinks I'm crazy. He says Bella died, but I know better. They come and talk to me when Jasper is out." She stood and slapped Rose's hand. "This is for flirting with a married man. Believe me, he's a one-woman man."

Rosalie wanted to laugh at the quirky woman, she seemed quite the opposite to her husband. When he was tall and a bit dark, she was petite, light and positive. Not letting her physical disadvantage stand in her way.

"Now take this, is my phone number. Call me if you want to talk." Then she seemed to ponder about her next words. "You want to know the truth, right? Look out for Jacob Black."

Then, with an incredible speed for someone so small who couldn't see her path, she ran to her house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what do you think?
> 
> Recommendation for the day:
> 
> From beyond the grave (1974) Anthology film about an antique dealer who owns a shop called Temptations Ltd. and the fate that befalls his customers who try to cheat him. Stories include "The Gate Crasher" a man frees an evil entity from an antique mirror, "An Act of Kindness" a married man befriends an old man and meets his daughter, "The Elemental" a rich greedy man finds he has an 'elemental' on his shoulder, and "The Door" a young couple buy an ornamental door that turns out to be a portal.
> 
> There's something with these stories that stays with you. After watching it I thought it twice before looking into a mirror ;)
> 
> There is something creepy with 70's horror films...


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for not posting. I got really late from work, sorry.
> 
> Remember that I told you that there would be five stories intertwined with the main story, well in today's chapter comes the first one. I changed to italics to difference the main story to the one the public is sharing. It will continue on next chapter, and let me tell you there's a reason why we're reading these other stories as they will give hints to Rose to find the truth ;)
> 
> Here's chapter 11.

Rosalie barely made it in time to the station that night. She didn't feel well rested as she spent the day tossing and turning. She couldn't take her mind from the Whitlock. It was either Jasper's pained voice when he talked about Eddie, or Alice happy dismissal of her husband's concerns. Then, when she thought about it, none of them confirmed if someone died at the fire. She assumed that Isabella was the one who died, because everything they said pointed into that direction, but then, shouldn't exist records of her death? She knew she had to find more about this Isabella.

Emmett greeted Rose with his usual dimpled smile, pushing a chair for her to seat.

"Ready for another crazy night? I had two callers that wanted to speak with Eddie, privately." He shook his head. "And the show doesn't start for another hour! I swear tonight is going to be crazy."

Rose smiled, there was something warm and fuzzy about Emmett. She was sure once the week was over she was going to stay friends with him.

xxx

Emmett was right. The public was crazy! Call after call, hundreds of tweets, one would think it was the middle of the day not one in the morning.

Suddenly, Emmett burst out laughing. "Oh, boy. You have to hear this one. I bet you ten bucks she has an interesting story."

Seth high-fived him. "Deal. Just because she has a sexy voice doesn't mean she has something interesting to tell."

By then Eddie got the call with the woman, because Emmett and Seth giggled like teenagers at his shocked gasp.

"Well, hello. Who do we have here?"

"Hi, I'm Mindy."

Rosalie rolled her eyes, as Seth and Emmett were almost rolling on the floor with laughter. The woman's voice was quite sexy, like sex-line operator sexy. But Eddie didn't seemed fazed at all, like the two teenage-minded buffoons sharing the booth with Rose.

"Have you ever heard about 'the Midonne'?" Mindy asked.

"No, I couldn't say that I have. Is this a traditional legend?"

The woman on the other side of the line chuckled. "Maybe."

Eddie laughed at the coquettish tone the woman used to answer. "Well, then I shall leave you to share the story with us. Go on, the mic is open for you."

_"Well, the Midonne were a tribe of women who supposedly lived in a far island, away from civilization. They were famous not only for the fabrics they traded, which were so rich and delicate that had queens and royalty fighting for it; no. They were all utterly beautiful. And if that wasn't enough to entice, they were known for offering the greatest sexual experience. It was known that as soon as a man laid with a Midonne girl, he would never find something as pleasurable thus being marked because of the magical experience. Of course, there was a catch. The girls weren't floozies, selling the goods. Nope. In order to get them to let you lie with them, the girl had to fall in love with you. Only a few men over time got the chance to experience the love of a Midonne girl, and mostly, it was a happy ending as the men fell in love with them too and they left their lands in pursue of astounding happiness with the girls. But a couple of times, it didn't end right. There was a man, who managed to fool the Midonne girl and after spending the night together, he left. The poor Midonne girl went crazy and ended up throwing herself from a cliff."_

_"It sounds a bit harsh, don't you think?" Eddie commented._

_Mindy chuckled. "Well, everything worthy must come with a price. Anyway, around that time, there was a Prince who was terribly spoiled by his parents. They sent him away to further his education but in his journey back home, he heard about the Midonne. The ship where he was travelling, brought between their cargo a couple of yards of the delicate fabric as a gift to his mother. Prince James was intrigued and somehow he conned the captain to deviate the course so the prince could give his thanks to the Midonne girls. Once he saw the youngest one, Victoria, he couldn't stop thinking about her. He spent days and nights thinking of ways to see the girl again. Because he knew, as soon as he came back to his kingdom, his parents would set him up with some princess or any respectable aristocrat girl._

_Now Prince James not only was used to get what he wanted, but he also developed a certain talent to deceive people without any trace of remorse. The same day the ship arrived, he escaped his entourage by stealing an old sailor suit. He climbed on the next ship about to set sail and went in search of young Victoria._

_Finally after a couple of weeks he found her._

_In the beginning, Victoria wasn't as pleased to see him. He was unkempt and after a long time surrounded by sailors, James' manners weren't nice. So James knew he had to step up his game. Day after day, he regaled Victoria with a little something. Sometimes it was a flower, sometimes a little candy. But when a couple of weekes passed and Victoria remained indifferent, he decided to do something radical._

_That night, he convinced one old rugged sailor to help him._

_The next day when Victoria made her round to the market, the old rugged sailor tried to rob her basket. James 'bravely' came to the rescue, making Victoria change her mind about him._

_After this 'heroic act' Victoria relented. She was as fond of James as he was of her. One night she held his hand and guided him to her boudoir. Victoria's room was quite simple, just a bed and armoires. Still, the delicate design of the fabric covering the bed made the room feminine, coquetish even. She guided James to lay with her but still was nervous, so James whispered loving nonsenses into her ear while kissing her. Little by little, he put off Victoria's hesitation and soon they were embraced in a passionate kiss. This unleashed the Midonne's magic._

_Four hours later, they lay completely sated. Victoria was whispering sweet words of love and devotion to James, who was so spent that found some of them like gibberish. He didn't notice when Victoria intertwined their fingers whispering words in the Midonne language and he was still unaware when a brilliant spark erupted from their hands. ___

__The next morning Victoria woke up to an empty bed._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Today's recommendations come from Ms. sue1zide:
> 
> Red rose (2002) A group of people with psychic powers are invited to spend the night in a haunted house. A Stephen King's story, what's more to say.
> 
> Psycho (1960) A Phoenix secretary embezzles $40,000 from her employer's client, goes on the run, and checks into a remote motel run by a young man under the domination of his mother.
> 
> A classic! I'm pretty sure you all have seen it ;)
> 
> House on haunted hill (1959) A millionaire offers $10,000 to five people who agree to be locked in a large, spooky, rented house overnight with him and his wife.
> 
> Another classic, directed by William Castle. What I would give to watch this one with all the gimmicks he used for his films! Yet, the remake of this film wasn't so bad.


	12. Chapter 12

_The next morning Victoria woke up to an empty bed. Thinking James moved to get food, she eagerly changed to her best dress, knowing she would have to take James to their queen to let her know of their bonding._

_Three hours later, with no sign of James, she left her house to look out for him._

_She roamed all around town, but no one had seen him._

_Finally, at night, one of the drunks of the bar mentioned a well-dressed man boarding a ship in the morning. Victoria was devastated. He fooled her! But it was nothing like the fury of the Midonne queen._

_By the next morning, all of the Midonnes were out of town. No one saw them leaving, but their things weren't home._

_Soon, word of the beautiful women leaving got around all the kingdoms. Queens and princesses were crying about losing the chance to possess one of the works of the Midonne._

_Sooner than that, James made his way back home, like the prodigal son he was. That same night, his parents made a feast in his honor, completely unaware of the despicable act James committed. The Queen was pushing single eligible girls around, in hopes that James set his eyes on one. Alas, James found all of them lacking... lacking something. It wasn't about beauty, some of the girls were worthy of the throne. But to James, they were all bland._

_The king declared a week of festivities in honor of James' return, in hope of making find a girl to marry or at least to settle a betrothal. What he didn't mention was that he was sick and he knew his days on this earth were counted. He needed to settle James' future so he could go in peace._

_Day after day, one party was more sumptuous than the other. Every known aristocrat came along with curiosity over Prince James. He met new people every day. On the last day, one new lady arrived. She certainly was beautiful, but something about her was different though no one could never pinpoint what. And this was the lady that captivated James._

_He eagerly asked to dance with her and plead to be his partner in the subsequent songs. That night was incredible for James, as he was enthralled by the mysterious lady. Everything about her intrigued him. Then, at midnight, when the queen called James to inquire about the mysterious lady, she suddenly vanished._

_James cried in desperation._

_For days the guard searched in the whole kingdom for the mysterious lady to no avail._

_And James, he was desperate. In the span of a few hours, he fell in love."_

_"Good, it serves him right" Seth murmured from behind Rose. She had to admit that the Midonne's story was captivating and once she turned around she noticed how enthralled were Seth and Emmett. There was something in that Mindy's voice that kept you listening with so much interest._

_"Ten days passed, and James sunk in the depths of a dark depression. All he could think about was that girl, he couldn't eat, he couldn't sleep. Finally, one day noticing how his sadness troubled his parents, James left the castle to wander around in the woods._

_Soon, he heard laughter. It was like the chiming of sweet bells. He knew the owner of the particular sound. It was her._

_James followed blindly the sound, getting deeper and deeper into the woods. Soon, he saw a glimpse of red wild hair. He was sure it was her, taunting him. James ran and ran until he got out of the woods into a strange place. The was fog around, though James was sure the sun was bright in the sky when he left the castle. But then, another glimpse of a beautiful face taunted him, and her little hand making signs to follow her. James didn't think it twice, he ran to her._

_The fog was getting thicker and thicker. Soon, he didn't know where he stood. He didn't recognize the area._

_"Come and get me..." Her sweet voice taunted again._

_James began to walk but was nervous as he couldn't see where he was going._

_"Come... Come..."_

_The voice was getting fainter, so James thought she was running again and he wasn't about to lose her. So he ran. He ran until he lost his foot and fell. Then everything faded to black._

_Sometime later, James opened his eyes. He was in so much pain. He looked around in hopes to find where he was, but all he saw was the blazing sun shining in the sky. He moved his arms around but didn't feel a thing. It was like he was floating, but with so much pain radiating from his chest. Instinctively he reached his chest with both hands to find a sharp rock coming out through it._

_"Aargh!" He yelled, counting in someone hearing him and coming to his aid._

_"Oh, you woke up." James couldn't believe it, it was her!_

_"Please, I'm pleading you. Help me."_

_"Ah, ah, ah." She told him in a sing-song voice. "You've been a naughty boy and naughty boys should be punished."_

_James struggled to keep his eyes open, the sunlight made it hard for him to see._

_"Please. I'm wealthy, my parents will compensate you."_

_"Ha, ha, ha. See, there's nothing that's in your parents' hands to give that I want."_

_"But, but, please! It hurts so much!"_

_"Hmm, well, it's supposed to hurt. And you just passed the two-hour mark. Victoria's pain lasted two days."_

_James opened his eyes in shock. Victoria? Sweet Victoria, who gave him her heart? But two days wasn't much to recover from a broken heart. James chuckled thinking all that empty talk about the Midonnes was mere trash._

_But the red hair tickled his nose. It was the mystery woman again._

_"And you laugh at my sister's pain. Tsk, tsk. It took two days until she exhaled her last breath. Don't you know what happens to us if our heart is broken after we bond? It's a terrible, terrible pain that ends with our life."_

_James gasped. This woman, the one who charmed him, was Victoria's sister? How did she know where to find him?_

_"See, there's really magic happening when we bond. You remember, hand in hand, fingers together and a little spark? Victoria bonded with you and when she died it my duty to find you and close the bond. So, her pain over your betrayal lasted two days, hmm, then your's will be double. It's just right."_

_And with a few words of farewell, the mystery woman left._

_James struggled and cried, screamed and cursed, but no one heard him. At the fourth day, James died. And with him, the legend of the Midonnes. Sometimes, one lucky man finds one and works his way to gain her heart. But still, they never traded with anyone and their story faded with time." ___

__"Wow." Eddie clapped. "Guys, what do you think?" He opened the intercom and Rose and the guys clapped. This story certainly deserved a prize._ _

__"Eddie, so would you want to meet a Midonne girl?" Mindy whispered in the sexiest voice._ _

__"Not in the way you are insinuating. But as a magical creature, I'm sure the Midonnes are interesting." He said chuckling._ _

__"But they're beautiful."_ _

__"Oh, and I'm happily married. Surely my wife wouldn't like it either."_ _

__"The ultimate sex experience" Mindy crooned._ _

__"No, really. I think I have the best with my wife. But thank you for sharing your story,"_ _

__While Eddie was answering Emmett heard the beep of the call coming back to him, and he answered and asked Mindy for her info._ _

__"Now while she didn't leave us her request, why don't go with a song of a broken heart in the mending, something that may have cheered poor Victoria. Let's hear 'I will survive' by Gloria Gaynor."_ _

__Then the intercom buzzed and Rose answered._ _

__"Hey, Eddie."_ _

__"Rose, did we lose that call?"_ _

__"No, I thought you sent it back."_ _

__"No, I was about to ask her for her song." Then Rose could swear she heard some calling for Eddie from inside the booth. "Aha, ohh."_ _

__Rose paid attention and the song that was blaring through the speakers wasn't one from Gloria Gaynor. It was 'Bad girls' from Donna Summer._ _

__"Eddie, do you have problems setting the songs?" She asked worriedly._ _

__"Hmm, no. No. It was a little misunderstanding. Don't worry. Well, I'll see you."_ _

__xxx_ _

__By the end of the show, Rose was still miffed. There weren't any more mistakes on the songs or the calls. Still, something was bothering her. Emmett asked her to stay for a while, the response of the fans on twitter and facebook required her attention._ _

__By eight in the morning, Rosalie was finally able to leave the station if only for something to eat if she wanted to catch Rebecca at the little terrace. While on her third cup of coffee, Rose had an epiphany: The flying magazine, the way someone cut the call from Eddie passing it to Emmett, the change of songs...She dialed the number hoping it wasn't too early to get an answer._ _

__"Alice? Hi, good morning. I hope I'm not waking you up. It's just, I have a question. Is it possible by any chance that Isabella is Eddie's assistant on the radio show?"_ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what do you think?
> 
> The recommendation for the day... it's from my country. 4 classic films from the same director Carlos Enrique Taboada (if you have the chance watch the originals, the remakes suck):
> 
> Even the wind is afraid (1968) Girls that were punished to sat at a boarding school during Spring Break have no idea the school is haunted by the restless spirit of a former student seeking revenge.
> 
> Blacker than the night (1975) When four women move into an old house left by one woman's aunt, strange things begin to happen. Bizarre voices, visions of ghosts, and mysterious noises lead them to discover the darkest powers of evil and a horror and agony beyond terror.
> 
> Poison for the fairies (1984) A 10-year-old girl convinces a lonely classmate that she is a witch, forcing the child to become her assistant. Though their games are initially rather naive, they gradually take a nasty and violent turn.
> 
> And my favorite: The book of stone (1968) A governess Julia comes to work in a bourgeois family that lives in an afforested property that they have recently bought. Julia is to take care of a little girl named Silvia, who insists that she plays with a little boy named Hugo - whom the adults all see is a stone statue in the courtyard.


	13. Chapter 13

"Alice? Hi, good morning. I hope I'm not waking you up. It's just, I have a question. Is it possible by any chance that Isabella is Eddie's assistant on the radio show?"

xxx

Rose went back to the old wind at the radio station, she needed to sort her thoughts before talking to Rebecca. Alice's affirmation that Isabella was indeed Eddie's assistant brought an onslaught of questions. Wasn't Isabella supposed to be dead? If not, why cut ties with Rebecca Black who seemed to cherish her so much?

Rose was so glad when she found the wing empty. Emmett was beginning to give her weird looks, and she wasn't ready to share her investigation yet. She skipped through the hallways and found the door that led to the terrace. With a push and a pull, she opened it, only to find Rebecca sitting on the bench with something like a book in her hands, crying.

"Oops!"

Rebecca lifted her head and smiled to Rose. "I knew you would come. Come on, sit."

'So much for collecting my ideas' Rose thought, but gingerly she sat.

"I brought my old photo album. Just don't mind the clothes, those were so different times."

Rebecca opened the album but before showing the pictures to Rose gave her a few words of introduction."Let me start with the beginning, Isabella's parents were our neighbors. When she was born, Rachel and I thought she was our doll." Then Rebecca opened the book, the first picture showed a man with two girls and a boy, all probably around seven years old. "This is my father, William, my sister Rachel and that slubbering mess is my brother Jacob."

Alarms ringed in Rosalie's ears. This was Jacob? Alice mentioned she needed to find him, and now Rose had a ton of questions about to burst from her mouth.

"He was cute then. Not that Rachel or I liked him. Our mother died giving birth to him, and I guess that our childish mind unconsciously blamed him. Then, you have Dad, he felt that Jacob was missing something because he never had the chance to meet our mother, so he spoiled Jacob rotten. And it obviously turned out badly, but it's in the past. Look now this picture." Rebecca showed the same group along a couple carrying a pink bundle. "Those are Charlie and Renee Swan, this little lump is Isabella, well, Bella for the family."

Picture after picture, Rosalie saw how Bella grew, always under the wings of Rebecca and Rachel, despite the age difference. Playing with dolls, her first bike ride, little Bella missing a few teeth. Always surrounded by the two sisters, who looked at her adoringly.

"She was so sweet and intelligent. She went to Vassar for college."

Now the pictures showed a teenager Bella at prom, then in her graduation gown, probably from high school followed by a more mature young woman in a formal dress.

"Sadly, while she was away, her parents died in a car crash." There were two pictures of a funeral, Bella again surrounded by Rachel and a very pregnant Rebecca. "So when she came back from college, we welcomed her with open arms. She stayed for a while with Rachel, until she found a nice apartment. She didn't come back alone, she brought her best friend with her. Alice Brandon was the daughter of the famous Brandon from Mississippi." The next picture showed Bella, now a woman, with a petite young woman with black hair. Rose already met this woman. The very same who made Rosalie question the age of KDGM employees in the seventies from the picture in that old meeting room, and the very same chirpy old woman who was open to give her more clues.

"This is Alice Brandon? I know her, but her last name now is Whitlock." Rose smiled, Alice's vitality shown on the picture.

Rebecca patted Rose's arm. "I knew she would marry Jasper. I swear she was the Ying to his Yang."

Then the next picture was from a Christmas party. Bella and Alice wore beautiful dresses albeit a bit too short for today's standards.

"Look how happy they were. Their first job was the Christmas special, then we rotated them through the female shows but talking about the ways to please your husband or keep your house impeccable wasn't their cup of tea. Much to Carmen and Esme's chagrin" Rebecca giggled, showing her another picture with the girls, the buxom lady who caught Seth's eye and one clone of a Stepford wife, the original film. "They were the hosts and tried to get the girls under their wing, but Bella and Alice were from a different generation. They were hard workers but never clicked with Carmen and Esme's show."

Rebecca turned the page on the album and sighed.

"And so, they met their fate."

The next picture showed the girls with two young men with a sign indicating mid-morning show. Rebecca tapped the picture, though no presentation was needed.

"This blond guy is Jasper Whitlock, and the one on the left is Eddie Masen."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're meeting all the people involved in what happened 43 years ago. What do you think?
> 
> For today's first chapter the suggestions come from imloki:
> 
> The thing (1982) A crew in Antarctica finds a neighboring camp destroyed and its crew dead except for a dog. Whatever killed them is nowhere to be found, unless it's hidden in plain sight.
> 
> One of the few remakes that surpasses the original. Excellent movie with excellent fx. There's a newer one that's a prequel but not this good.
> 
> The cabin in the woods (2012) Five teenagers head off for a weekend at a secluded cabin in the woods. They arrive to find they are quite isolated with no means of communicating with the outside world. When the cellar door flings itself open, they of course go down to investigate. They find an odd assortment of relics and curios, but when one of the women, Dana, reads from a book, she awakens a family of deadly zombie killers. However, there's far more going on than meets the eye.
> 
> This one I like too because of the twist to the initially common plot. And there's Chris Hemsworth.
> 
> Trick'r treat ( 2007) Five interwoven stories that occur on Halloween: An everyday high school principal has a secret life as a serial killer; a college virgin might have just met the guy for her; a group of teenagers pull a mean prank; a woman who loathes the night has to contend with her holiday-obsessed husband; and a mean old man meets his match with a demonic, supernatural trick-or-treater.
> 
> One of the best horror anthologies, this is how they should be done.
> 
> From dusk till dawn ( 1996) Seth Gecko and his younger brother Richard are on the lam after a bloody bank robbery in Texas. They escape across the border into Mexico and will be home-free the next morning, when they pay off the local kingpin. They just have to survive 'from dusk till dawn' at the rendezvous point, which turns out to be a Hell of a strip joint.


	14. Chapter 14

Rosalie looked at the picture. The girls had beaming smiles while the boys were making goofy faces to the camera.

"Their producer broke his leg that Christmas while hanging some lights at his house, and the girl who was his assistant couldn't handle the work by herself. So Rachel decided to get the girls in the show. Well, more exactly, after seeing the chemistry between them." Rebecca then showed her another picture from the Christmas party.

Bella and Edward were dancing together but you could see Alice talking with Jasper in the back.

"It was so funny. Bella and Alice were introduced to the rest of the employees, as they only met the ones involved in Carmen and Esme's show. And they caused quite the stir," Rebecca chuckled, "Edward and Jasper were in their element, surrounded by people while they were sharing jokes. Those two always knew how to liven up a party, so people mingled around them. Then the girls arrived, all dolled up and searching for Carmen or Esme, or someone they knew. But to the boys, it was like the skies opened up. I swear, Jasper shut up mid-joke and Edward almost dropped his drink. And they made their way to the girls. It took them mere seconds to click and soon they were dancing and joking. I always teased Bella about it. She had the cutest blush." Rebecca's wistful smile suddenly decayed. "But not only the boys were the ones who noticed. Oh, no. One of the older producers had a crush on Alice, and well, my brother developed an insane infatuation for Bella. Given that he wasn't used to rejection, it caused us many problems." Now Rebecca was shaking her head.

"Really? How?" Rosalie was vying for more information.

"Well, Dad was trying to get Jacob to follow his steps. But Jacob wasn't so, how could I say it? interested. Supposedly he was in charge of new hirings but we knew it was just an excuse for him to meet young girls and, and, well, you know. Dad was blind to our concerns but still was smart enough to let Rachel as his right hand and me in charge of payroll. God knows what Jacob would do if he was in charge of the money! But Bella was never interested. We sort of grew up together so she only saw him as her annoying older brother; and he, he never cared, until Bella came back. When she became a woman."

For what she noticed in the old pictures, Bella grew from a cute little girl to a very beautiful woman. So it wasn't difficult to imagine men vying for her attention.

"Jacob was relentless," she showed Rose another picture where a desk was covered in floral bouquets, "but Bella didn't even look at them. It became exceedingly obvious she was in love with Eddie." Then Rebecca blushed. "If you keep the secret," then she turned to whisper to Rose, "I knew they were engaged." Rebecca nodded with those last words.

'Well,' Rosalie thought, 'Eddie always claim he's a happily married man. Maybe they got hitched in secret'.

"Tell me about the fire." Rosalie knew that's when everything went wrong.

Rebecca frowned. "Hmm, well, see," she hesitated, "ahh, that night was the great opening of the new wing. We had a big party. Bella was supposed to sit at our table. But the party started and they never arrived. Neither Alice or Jasper or Jacob." Tears began to fall from her eyes. "By the time dessert was served, we got the news. They said the old wing was on fire. We all ran, but when we got there, the firemen already extinguished it. All we knew was that someone accidentally got injured." Now, Rebecca was sobbing. "Later Dad got called to the hospital, Alice, Jasper, Eddie, and Jacob were injured. But Bella,"

"What happened to Bella?"

"They said she died." And now Rebecca was crying. "Months later, Dad told us Eddie was back. He was on the Halloween special, that show you're working on. He told us he was heavily scarred and he didn't want anybody to see him because he was embarrassed. And then he told us he disowned Jacob, and that he left the country. To never answer his calls."

"But then,"

"I know. Dad never explained it, but I think he hires someone who looks like Eddie. But the real Eddie is the one who hosts the show. He's quite sick and only gets the energy to work one week yearly. That's why he keeps it on the old wing, and nobody has access."

"And your brother?"

Rebecca frowned. "We never heard of him again."

xxx

Rosalie left the terrace disappointed. All the mystery led to nothing, just a scam to keep the audience coming back. She was walking through the hallways on her way out when she heard a female voice.

"That's all wrong."

She ran to the side where she thought the voice came from, but there was nothing there.

"Don't believe it. It isn't true."

But there was no one there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before you come to a conclusion, let me remind you that Rebecca is only sharing what she knows. Then there's what Alice knows and what Jasper knows... There's so much Rose still has to find out.
> 
> For today suggestion we have sherylb's list:
> 
> The haunting (1963) Dr. Markway, doing research to prove the existence of ghosts, investigates Hill House, a large, eerie mansion with a lurid history of violent death and insanity. With him are the skeptical young Luke, who stands to inherit the house, the mysterious and clairvoyant Theodora and the insecure Eleanor, whose psychic abilities make her feel somehow attuned to whatever spirits inhabit the old mansion. As time goes by it becomes obvious that they have gotten more than they bargained for as the ghostly presence in the house manifests itself in horrific and deadly ways.
> 
> A must-see classic! Please skip the remake. This is so frightening.
> 
> The omen (1976) Robert and Katherine Thorn seem to have it all. They are happily married and he is the US Ambassador to Great Britain, but they want nothing more than to have children. When Katharine has a stillborn child, Robert is approached by a priest at the hospital who suggests that they take a healthy newborn whose mother has just died in childbirth. Without telling his wife he agrees. After relocating to London, strange events - and the ominous warnings of a priest - lead him to believe that the child he took from that Italian hospital is evil incarnate.
> 
> Another classic. I can guarantee some scenes will stay with you after watching it.


	15. Chapter 15

_"That's all wrong."_

_She ran to the side where she thought the voice came from, but there was nothing there._

_"Don't believe it. It isn't true."_

_But there was no one there. ___

__xxxxxxxxxxx_ _

__Rose turned around, now unsure if it was her imagination playing tricks._ _

__"Hey, Rose!"_ _

__She jumped._ _

__But it was Seth. "Did you see her?"_ _

__"Her? Who?"_ _

__"The girl with the blue dress. I saw her coming over here."_ _

__Rosalie looked around, somehow relieved that someone else noticed the woman._ _

__"I heard her, but when I came looking for her I didn't find her."_ _

__"Really? Damn! She was so pretty, I was going to ask for her number." Seth seemed to be truly disappointed. "This is the second time I missed her."_ _

__"Wait, you've seen her before? How does she look?"_ _

__"Like an angel?"_ _

__Rose elbowed Seth._ _

__"Not really tall, silky dark brown hair that reaches her waist, porcelain pale skin, dreamy dark eyes." Seth blushed. "And a great set of knockers."_ _

__From her earlier talk with Rebecca, Rose managed to copy a few pictures of Bella and Eddie, so just out of curiosity she showed one picture to Seth. She had a hunch on the identity of the mysterious woman._ _

__"Is this her?"_ _

__Seth gasped. "Yes. Where did you get this? Is this from last Halloween? More important, what's her name? Is she single?"_ _

__Rose giggled. Seth really had the mind of a teenager. "If she really is who I think, then I'm sorry Seth. But she's married, or at least engaged. Her name is Isabella." She didn't know how to explain that those bellbottom pants weren't a costume but the latest fashion when the picture was taken._ _

__"Just my luck, always happens with the women that I like,"_ _

__"Hey, guys. Why are you still here?" Emmett was carrying a cardboard box full of posters. For the first time since she met him, Rose saw the man sad._ _

__"We saw a woman walking around," Seth began to answer._ _

__"Really? Who was it? Nobody is supposed to come around here."_ _

__"Oh, it's no one. It was a mistake." Rose was fast to answer. She was sure Emmett wouldn't approve her activities. And she still had so much to find. Because despite Rebecca's words, Rose was sure there was more to Eddie's story and she was determined to find the truth._ _

__xxx_ _

__"I'm so glad you heard her. She doesn't tell me, but I fear sometimes she feels alone." Alice answered Rose's call and greeted her like they were old friends. She went in more detail about Bella. How they met in college, how they became best friends._ _

__Rose knew she had to keep Alice talking in order to find out what truly happened to Isabella. Rose couldn't ask straight out if Bella was dead, so she trying to skirt around the issue hoping Alice explained what happened after the fire._ _

__"But then why does she hide?" Rose just explained to Alice how she heard Bella's voice and when she tried to find her she wasn't there. She also mentioned Seth's crush on Bella, which caused Alice to laugh._ _

__"Well, after all that happened, she only let a few people in. Like with me and Jasper. Just because he never listens..."_ _

__"Al, baby. I'm home!" Rose heard a male voice coming through the speaker._ _

__"Shit. I have to go. I'll call you later. Bye!"_ _

__Rose didn't understand why Alice was hiding their conversation from her husband. At least now she knew more, and who knows, maybe she could find out more on her next shift. And with those positive thoughts, Rosalie finally got the so much-needed sleep._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I owe you two chapters! So I was thinking posting two today and two again tomorrow.
> 
> Now I asked my son for movies and here are his suggestions:
> 
> Ju-on (2002) A mysterious and vengeful spirit marks and pursues anybody who dares enter the house in which it resides.
> 
> This one gave the both of us nightmares. He highly recommends the Japanese version over the American remake.
> 
> Shutter (2004) A young photographer and his girlfriend discover mysterious shadows in their photographs after a tragic accident. They soon learn that you can not escape your past.
> 
> Again, it's way better the original.
> 
> One missed call (2003) People mysteriously start receiving voicemail messages from their future selves, in the form of the sound of them reacting to their own violent deaths.
> 
> Fun fact: I used to have the same ringtone after watching the film, it was so creepy. Watch the japanese version.
> 
> Oculus (2013) A woman tries to exonerate her brother, who was convicted of murder, by proving that the crime was committed by a supernatural phenomenon.


	16. Chapter 16

Rose's third day at 'The hairy claw' started with a big surprise.

"Guys, we're having a visitor tonight. Well, more likely, she'll come before the show ends in the morning. Miss Rachel Black." Eddie announced.

Rose instantly started to make plans. Not only she decided to confront Eddie with some of the old pictures, just to verify if this man was an actor hired to act as the real Eddie. But now, if she was ingenious, she could have a talk with the other sister. What would be her side of the story?

Rose kept working while making plans when Emmett made a big fuzz over one of the callers.

"Mr. Stephan! So glad to hear you again." Emmett was beaming, "sure, I'll get you to him. Now, are you ready to scare the bejeezus of me again? Aha, sorry to hear that rheumatism is slowing you down."

Emmett kept talking to who seemed to be a cherished old man until Eddie finally answered the intercom.

"What's up, Emmett?"

"I got Mr. Stephan on line one."

"Really? Wow, let me talk to him. We still have eighty seconds before we're back. Stephan, hi!" Eddie pulled the call, while Rose and Seth were looking at Emmett waiting for an explanation.

"Mr. Stephan is a constant caller. Every year he tells us a great story. I swear the man collects our prizes, he must have more than twenty."

Seth grinned, his steepled hands showed he was ready to hear a good story.

"Now, we have a very important guest. Mr. Stephan is about to share with us one of his stories."

"Hmm, good night Eddie. _This story is about a couple of old people. Really old people. Marcus and Didyme, they lived in adjoined little houses. Every day they quarreled and argued, they made of bickering an art. 'Marcus, turn down your radio, your awful music don't let me sleep', 'Didyme, your cat peed in my yard again'. They never called the police or someone on the other, they were lonely people after all. Their only interaction with another human being, was the old beggar that from time to time, came pleading for something to eat. Now, this was a subject where they agree wholeheartedly. Whoever heard the beggar, threw a shoe at his head. 'Work, you lazy hobo!' they yelled to the poor man. ___

__Rosalie tried to enjoy the story, but there was something in the old man's voice that bored her._ _

___"Now, Aro the beggar, he woke up hungry every morning. He didn't have any recollection from the day before. He got up, dressed in his old rags and walked to Marcus and Didyme's yards and pleaded for something to eat. He always found something despite being received with yells. And this went on for a few days until Aro arrived just in time to see Marcus charging his shotgun, walk to Didyme's door, ring the bell, and when Didyme opened, he shot her. Then Marcus walked around the porch and drank the cup of tea that Didyme left for him, falling dead poisoned by the tea._ _ _

___Aro always fainted and then woke up again, to dress up in his rags, and walk to their houses where they were arguing._ _ _

___This went on and on, until one day, Aro became conscious. When Marcus yelled that Didyme's Tv was loud again, Aro realized this already happened before." ____ _

____"I don't understand," Seth complained._ _ _ _

____"It's a loop," Rosalie answered, bored already with the story. She barely paid attention to the way Aro discovered he was Didyme's brother and how made her life miserable. Turned out Marcus and Didyme were married, his family was very rich and never approved of her, so they hired Aro to separate them and somehow they ended trapped in the loop._ _ _ _

____Rose yawned. The public response to the awaited story from Stephan was poor._ _ _ _

____Emmett tried to get in touch with Eddie, but he was distracted._ _ _ _

_____Finally, Aro discovers that he had to step up and get the shot instead of his sister, after drinking the tea. Once he died, Didyme and Marcus were free to live their lives. ____ _ _ _

______Eddie called Emmett through the intercom, his voice was shaken. "Em, I need a favor. Could you please tell a story, an interesting one. We need to recover the audience and I want to have a few words with Stephan."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"Sure Ed."_ _ _ _ _ _

______"Well Stephan, that was quite interesting. But before we continue with the song of your preference, we have a special guest. Emmett 'Tweety bird' McCarty will tell us a fantastic story." Eddie told to the audience._ _ _ _ _ _

______"Hmm, hi! Well, let me tell you the story of Alistair McKinny..."_ _ _ _ _ _

______But Rose's attention wasn't on Emmett's story. No. She was trying to hear what Eddie had to say to Stephan, why he was so troubled by Stephan's silly story. Because there was something bothering him._ _ _ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember, each story will give Rose a clue ;)
> 
> Now another set of suggestions, a few favorites of mine:
> 
> Tourist trap (1979) A group of young friends stranded at a secluded roadside museum are stalked by a masked assailant who uses his telekinetic powers to control the attraction's mannequins.
> 
> Those mannequins are scary!
> 
> The legend of hell house (1973) A team consisting of a physicist, his wife, a young female psychic and the only survivor of the previous visit are sent to the notorious Hell House to prove/disprove survival after death. Previous visitors have either been killed or gone mad, and it is up to the team to survive a full week in isolation and solve the mystery of the Hell House
> 
> The innocents (1961) In Victorian England, the uncle of orphaned niece Flora and nephew Miles, hires Miss Giddens as governess to raise the children at his estate with total independence and authority. Soon after her arrival, Miss Giddens comes to believe that the spirits of the former governess Miss Jessel and valet Peter Quint are possessing the children. Miss Giddens decides to help the children to face and exorcise the spirits.
> 
> A horror story that will scare you without blood or gore.


	17. Chapter 17

_"Well, let me tell you the story of Alistair McKinney. He was one of those guys, he had a 'Je ne sais quoi' that made all the girls putty in his hands. Knowing it was the only skill God provide for him, he made use of it. He preyed on shy, lonely girls, made them fall in love with him and his sad story, somehow he always managed to get a hand on their savings and then he left." ___

"He doesn't sound like a good guy," Seth mumbled loud enough to be heard on the microphone. 

__"No, he really wasn't. But his charm was undeniable. Men always found him funny and harmless, that's how he always found his way around his victims' family. Anyway, as you can imagine, McKinney had to live on the run. There was always a concerned brother, an irate father looking out for him. One day, he was drinking at a tiny bar in New York. He almost finished with the profits of his last victim and was wondering where to go when the door of the bar opened and the angry scowl of the brother of one of his victims greeted him. Mind you, this wasn't one of the nicest places. No, when McKinney wanted to unwind, he always chose rundown places. He reserved the nice ones to impress his future victims. When he saw the man, he knew he had to run before he recognized him. So he hunched his shoulders and walked his way out, careful to stay behind other men. He managed to get out of the bar through a back door in one minute. In his rush to leave, he didn't watch where he stepped and he caught shit. Literally, he stood over dog poo piled at the bar back entrance." This earned laughter from Seth. ___ _

With Emmett busy narrating the story, Rosalie was in charge of the phone. Between calls, she was busy looking in the manual the way to also hear what was going on with Eddie and Stephan's call. Sure, eavesdropping wasn't ethical, but she was desperate. 

_____"McKinney rubbed his foot on the sidewalk, trying to get rid of the disgusting matter while keeping an eye on the back door in case the man he was running off went out searching for him. McKinney was focused on his shoe when he leaned against a car door, so he jumped when the door opened._ _ _ _ _

_____"Well, if it isn't Alistair McKinney just standing in my car." A man in an expensive suit said. McKinney tried to get away, but the man was accompanied by two bulky bodyguards._ _ _ _ _

_____"Do I know you?" McKinney was a good physiognomist and he couldn't remember the man's face._ _ _ _ _

_____"Oh no. But your name is well known. Your exploits are famous, a few resented relatives came to ask for my help."_ _ _ _ _

_____McKinney gulped. By now he was aware of who was talking to him, Caius Volturi, the alleged mafia boss._ _ _ _ _

_____"I could kill you right at this minute and nobody would miss you. You don't have an idea of how many asked for your head."_ _ _ _ _

_____But McKinney really had an idea, so inside he started to pray on what he thought were his last minutes on Earth. He closed his eyes as he wasn't ready to face death yet._ _ _ _ _

_____"But first and foremost, I'm a businessman. And the kind of service you provide... well, I may have some use for it."_ _ _ _ _

_____Uh?_ _ _ _ _

_____"See, I have a little sister." The face of the man shone. "Yeah, she's the daughter my father had with his last wife. It's a shame none of them were still here to watch her grow. My little sister is at that age that she tries to rebel from the house rules. She's getting used to having her way and sometimes that scares me. Now, I know you. You never cared for those women, you just used them for the money. So what about if I pay you so you entertain my sister?"_ _ _ _ _

_____McKinney smiled relieved. He knew a few things about entertaining a woman, but never a brother asked those services of him. Something else was happening here, but on the other hand, it wasn't like he had a choice in the matter." ____ _ _ _

______Rose hardly noticed how enthralled was the audience with Emmett's tale, she finally got access to Eddie's call._ _ _ _ _ _

______"But you know he's still out there. I can help you to get rid of him." Stephan said._ _ _ _ _ _

______"I don't want you to get your hands dirty. Believe me, we got it under control." Was Eddie's reply._ _ _ _ _ _

______Then Rose lost again the call. "Ughh!" She complained. Now she got more questions! How could this get more complicated?_ _ _ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't worry, next chapter will be up in a few minutes ;)
> 
> Today's recommendations come from miss MooMoo:
> 
> 1) Valentine - (2001) Four friends are terrorized by a cupid mask-wearing killer the wronged in their youth.
> 
> 2) Witchboard - (1987) A woman unleashes the ghost of a dead playful 10-year-old boy via an Ouija board at a friends party. However, when the playful ghost develops a sudden taste for violent murder she must race to close the portal of the damned that was opened.
> 
> 3) April Fools Day - (1986 The Original) A girl, Muffy, invites a group of her college friends to her family's home on a secluded island for the time of their lives, but what she fails to mention is that it could be the last time of their lives. As soon as they arrive on the island, someone starts trimming the guest list...one murder at a time.
> 
> So underrated, with a great twist at the end.
> 
> 4) Happy Birthday To Me - (1981) Before her 18th birthday Virginia's friends fall victim to a killer and she begins to wonder if she herself is responsible. Due to a freak accident one year earlier, she is experiencing blackouts. What will be discovered when the truth is revealed?
> 
> 5) Slumber Party Massacre - (1982) An 18-year-old girl is left at home alone by her parents and decides to have a slumber party. However, things take a turn for the worse when their party is crashed by a power tool yielding escaped murderer.
> 
> 6) Sleepaway Camp - (1983) After a horrific boating accident claims the life of her family, a shy girl is sent to camp. Shortly after her arrival, a series of bizarre and violent "accidents" begin to claim the lives of various campers.
> 
> You have to watch it 'til the end, now this is one I never saw coming.


	18. Chapter 18

Emmett continued with his story, completely unaware of Rosalie's struggles. _"So Caius' driver took them to an elegant mansion. As soon as they passed the gates, McKinney became aware of the heavy security surrounding the mansion. If he thought to escape, those plans just flew out of the window._

__

Caius led him through an impressive steel door, to a massive lobby. There, over the chimney's mantle, was a paint of an old man with a beautiful blond young woman."

__

"Those are Dad and his belated last wife, Buffy."

__

McKinney thought his luck changed. Buffy looked like a model coming straight out of Playboy magazine, he was picturing Caius' sister like Miss February.

__

"Now, let me introduce you to Renata. Her side of the house is this way."

__

Caius led McKinney out of the house, through the garden. McKinney noticed a building like a pool house but surrounded by a barbwire fence. When he turned to look to Caius, the man sighed.

__

"You don't have an idea how crafty is my sister when she wants to get out of the house." __

____

Rose made a last attempt to access the call. This time she only heard Eddie's side.

____

"Good try, but no. We aren't trapped in a loop. And we don't need to be saved. Really, Stephan, I swear we are fine. And no, he still doesn't talk to us" Eddie chuckled to whatever Stephan was saying. "No, but maybe your theory from two years ago was closer to the truth." he paused, "no we have nothing to fear, least of all from Jacob Black."

____

Rose almost jumped but now it seemed like Eddie was through with the call.

____

_"Caius opened the gate leading to the pool house, there McKinney found the windows' grills had intricate designs with bright colors._

_____ _

"Renata is quite the artist. She has an extravagant taste but if it makes her feel comfortable at home, then I'm all for it."

_____ _

The door to the pool house had a special lock, that not only required a password but also needed Caius' fingerprint. McKinney was beginning to fear that Caius was an overprotective brother, but then why bring him in? This Renata must be something else.

_____ _

The door opened after a long beep.

_____ _

Now, the interior wasn't like anything McKinney imagined. Sure, all the furniture was mismatched and every wall was painted in a different color. But the house was warm and welcoming.

_____ _

"Hey sis, I'm home!" Caius yelled.

_____ _

"I'm in the basement!" A sexy feminine voice answered.

_____ _

Caius rolled his eyes and led an overexcited McKinney to a door.

_____ _

"She has all her tools in the basement, she hates when the living room gets dirty, so she works over there," he pointed to the interior of the dark room.

_____ _

McKinney didn't notice the click-clack of the lock when Caius closed the door, neither the various switches he pushed to light the way downstairs. No, McKinney was excited to meet Renata.

_____ _

"I brought you a surprise, Ren," Caius called for his sister again, pushing aside a black plastic curtain that separated the stairs from the basement.

_____ _

McKinney gasped. This wasn't what he expected. There was a table with metal tools, then over a large plastic mat, was one large black cross. It was higher than him! What did Renata need the cross for?

_____ _

Then he smelled it. It was pee, and sweat, and decay.

_____ _

"For me?"

_____ _

McKinney turned around and almost fainted. Renata was here, but Renata was nothing like her mother, or her father. Renata was a tall brick of muscles, towering McKinney's 6' 2'', her disfigured face was sporting a big smile. A big smile that made showed two large fangs.

_____ _

"Thank you, Big Brother. I needed a new toy." She walked to hug Caius, in one hand she was holding a carving knife.

_____ _

McKinney was shaking in fear. Caius smiled and whispered to him, "didn't I told you that Dad rescued Buffy from her parent's farm? It seems like they loved to keep their family affairs between family. A lot of inbreeding produced a very beautiful Buffy, but sadly she was as weak and ill as she was dumb. Now, Renata is the opposite of her mother. She's very intelligent and I'm supporting her in her dream: to become a doctor." Then Caius talk louder to his sister, "Mr. McKinney wanted to meet you, Ren. He will help you with your anatomy class."

_____ _

Renata took McKinney's arms and pulled him to the cross, while Caius left laughing. McKinney was pleading, but when Renata told him she wanted to win his heart while pointing her knife to his chest, that's when he started to scream." __

______ _ _

Seth clapped and cheered to Emmett's story. The audience went crazy. And Rose wanted to cry, for every little thing she found out about Eddie and Bella, three more questions arose out of it. Worst, she wasn't sure that her eavesdropping went unnoticed.

______ _ _

Emmett gently pushed her back to her side of the desk, making her phone fall from her hands. When she reached for it, it opened on her pictures file. Specifically in the picture of the 1974 employees. There, in bright letters, right under Jasper Whitlock's name she saw it: Stephan Horowitz, intern.

______ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Stephan knew Eddie prior to the fire. Maybe he knows more about Eddie's story ;)
> 
> My suggestions for today are two films that had the back luck to come around the same time that Psycho, so they went unnoticed:
> 
> Les yeux sans visage (1960) A surgeon causes an accident which leaves his daughter disfigured and goes to extremes to give her a new face.
> 
> Peeping Tom (1960) A young man murders women, using a movie camera to film their dying expressions of terror.


	19. Chapter 19

For the rest of the shift, Rose spent her time looking at the picture. Now she could place a name with some faces: At the back, Eddie with Isabella in his arms, joking with Jasper and Alice. The man with glasses barely containing his laughter, to their right, was Stephan. At the front, standing proud were William and Ephraim Black. To their left, the two women in formal wear with the same coloring were Rebecca and Rachel Black. That left the man scowling on the corner, that was Jacob Black.

Jacob, who according to Edward wasn't a threat, but Rosalie considered him the only menace to what seemed a match made in heaven.

"Rose, is everything right?" Emmett asked concerned.

She blushed but was fast to answer she was fine. She was letting her curiosity to solve the mystery to interfere with her work. So, she turned her attention to the tweets from the audience. She giggled when she noticed that this night, Emmett was the one gaining the favor of the public. Men praising his tale, women claiming he had a sexy voice, some of them going as far as to leave their number! And a few wondering why he was nicknamed 'Tweety bird'.

"Hey Em," Rose called to him, "why do they call you 'Tweety bird'?"

"Yeah, sorry man but it makes me think your wee-wee is sort of 'birdy'. Mine is more of an anaconda kind." Seth said laughing and wriggling his brows.

Emmett was blushing but answered "Anaconda just coming out of their egg. I don't need to brag about my manhood, thank you very much. The moniker is very old, nothing to do with how I am today."

The buzz of the intercom cut whatever Seth was going to say to Emmett.

"Guys, the show is about to end. Don't forget we have visitors today." Eddie reminded to the team.

"Sure, Eddie. Thanks."

xxx

Ten minutes later, the doors opened and an old woman in a well-tailored pantsuit entered.

"Good night boys, and girl," she said with a nod to Rosalie. With confidence, she walked to the intercom to greet Eddie. "Hey, Eddie. Great show!"

"Thanks, Rachel. It's always good to hear you."

Rose apraised the woman because she was different from Rebecca. While Rebecca was a bit plump and had a warm smile, Rachel was very thin. She was wearing a tight bun that hid most of her gray hair and was only wearing red lipstick. Rebecca was amicable, but Rachel was reserved.

"Well, I'm here just to congratulate you. Yesterday and today's shows exceeded not only our expectations but the ratings from last year. Emmett, your story alone brought us two points more over to our competition."

She clapped and Rose and Seth joined her. 'Though, to be honest, how much competition could they have at three in the morning?' Rose was thinking.

Soon, Rachel was leaving, but not after asking discreetly Rose to schedule an appointment. She mentions she wanted to have a few words with her.

xxx

As soon as she got home, Rose went to sleep. Tired of thinking and looking for answers. Unfortunately, she didn't rest. She dreamed about Eddie making the show, a shadow looming behind. He smiled and joked, 'This isn't a loop'. But then he disappeared until he got back... the next year. Then she heard Rebecca explaining 'He was heavily scarred, he didn't want anyone to see him.' while Alice jumped out of nowhere whining 'But I talk to them! Bella is my friend' Rebecca argued 'But she's dead!' Then Rosalie remembered Alice slapping her arm 'This is for flirting with a married man'. How did Alice know? Then Seth running 'I saw her! The pretty girl with the blue dress!' Face after face, all coming and going, giving opposite arguments but somehow all seemed true. The last face she saw, was one man with glasses, 'He's still out there. Out there.'

Rose woke up with a jolt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're getting close to the end. Next chapter Rose will talk with Stephan and a few other characters that were also present at the time of the fire.
> 
> Recommendations for today: Stephen King's adaptations! (suggested by miss sue1zide)
> 
> Maximum overdrive (1986) A group of people tries to survive when machines start to come alive and become homicidal.
> 
> Pet sematary (1989) The Creeds have just moved to a new house in the countryside. Their house is perfect, except for two things: the semi-trailers that roar past on the narrow road, and the mysterious cemetery in the woods behind the house. The Creed's neighbors are reluctant to talk about the cemetery, and for good reason too.
> 
> Misery (1990) After a famous author is rescued from a car crash by a fan of his novels, he comes to realize that the care he is receiving is only the beginning of a nightmare of captivity and abuse.
> 
> 1408 (2007) A man who specializes in debunking paranormal occurrences checks into the fabled room 1408 in the Dolphin Hotel. Soon after settling in, he confronts genuine terror.
> 
> Carrie (1976) Carrie White, a shy, friendless teenage girl who is sheltered by her domineering, religious mother, unleashes her telekinetic powers after being humiliated by her classmates at her senior prom.
> 
> Let me add some:
> 
> Salem's lot (1979) A novelist and a young horror fan attempt to save a small New England town which has been invaded by vampires.
> 
> Needful things (1993) A mysterious new shop opens in a small town which always seems to stock the deepest desires of each shopper, with a price far heavier than expected.
> 
> The stand (1994) After a deadly plague kills most of the world's population, the remaining survivors split into two groups - one led by a benevolent elder and the other by a maleficent being - to face each other in a final battle between good and evil.


	20. Chapter 20

Rose found Stephan Horowitz address after a couple of hours. The man had so many namesakes, but she hoped the one she found living in Seattle was the one she was looking for.

Soon, she found herself walking around a middle-class neighborhood, with trimmed grass and lovely houses. Number fifty-seven belonged to a one-story beige house, with red windows.

"Ok, this is it." She rang the bell.

"Coming!" Someone yelled from the inside.

Soon, the door was opened by an older woman. She was probably in her sixties, but wow. Dressed in a fitted dress showing her still voluptuous figure, her hair was black as the night, probably the result of an expensive dye and perfectly styled, her make-up was flawless, especially the red lipstick covering her lips. She was eyeing Rose from head to toe but not in a dismissive way, more like trying to figure out if she met Rose before.

"Good afternoon, I'm looking for Mr. Stephan Horowitz."

"Hmm," The woman still was trying to figure out Rosalie, so she decided to be blunt. After all, if she got the wrong house by now the woman would have told her.

"I'm Rosalie Hale and I work at KDGM. Actually, I'm working at 'The hairy claw' show and,"

By then the woman was smiling, so she interrupted Rose speech and welcomed her into her house.

"You work with Eddie? Ay Dios mío!*[Oh my god!]* come in, come in." The woman almost pulled Rose inside while she offered her a seat in an old but very well preserved couch. "Stephan went out for groceries, I'm sure he'll be back any minute. Well, except is Carlisle is driving. The man is infuriating, I swear I walk faster than the way he drives! Now, do you want something to drink? Water? Coffee? Tea? Oh, Esme is in the kitchen, she probably has lemonade ready."

Rose was a bit overwhelmed, but she asked for a glass of lemonade.

Soon, the raven-haired woman was back, with another woman around the same age, though this one had caramel hair styled in soft waves.

"I brought sandwiches."

The two women sat in front of Rose and took a sandwich each.

Rose sipped her lemonade and thanked the women.

"So you were telling us you work at KDGM." The raven-haired one said.

"Yes, I've been for the last couple of months, but I was asked to join the staff on the night shift. For this week, at least."

"And how is Eddie faring? Still broadcasting from the old wing, right?"

"Yeah, I feared on my first shift that I wouldn't know how to operate any of the equipment, but I was surprised to find only the best inside the booth. I'm on the team in charge of the social media surrounding the show."

The caramel haired woman nodded. "He doesn't need an assistant. Eddie works with his door closed, I know."

"Oh, sorry. I never introduced us." The black haired woman exclaimed.

"How rude!" The other one chastised.

"I'm Carmen Horowitz and this is Esme Cullen."

Rose gasped. She heard those names before. Carmen was the one who Seth liked. Damn, she still looks stunning, that left the other as the one she called 'Stepford wife'. Certainly, both knew how to take care of their appearance. But then Rose remembered, wasn't her last name Black?

"I sort of knew about you. I have a picture, let me show you," Rose took her phone out of her purse and showed them the picture of the 1974 employees.

Carmen burst out laughing and Esme giggled.

"My God, Carm, you always knew how to steal a shot."

"And look at our hair." Then Carmen looked at Rose, "Ah, right. I was still Carmen Black. Puff" She dismissed her last name. "At the time I was divorcing Ephraim and he was hooking up with future fifth Mrs. Black. The man got nine wives before he died. But that's how I met my Stephan." Carmen had dreamy eyes and Esme giggled.

"It was such a scandal! Carmen is eight years older than Stephan." Esme added.

"Never mind that Ephraim was twelve years older than me. William tried to fire me after the divorce, but his girls liked me." Carmen shrugged her shoulders.

"And our show was a success."

"Mira Esme, those are Lalo and Jasper!"*[Look Esme]*

"My sweet boys, always so handsome." Then Esme turned to Rose, "My Carlisle was the one who hired them just fresh out of college. He saw the potential."

"All the girls fawned over them, and they had enough charisma to make the guys like them. They were a hit since the beginning." Carmen looked at Rose. "Sorry hun, we just start to talk and don't know when to stop."

"Oh, no. It's fine by me. As a matter of fact, that's why I'm here. I want to know, well, I'm investigating the fire."

The two women lost their smiles, and the door opened.

"We're home!" A distinguished old man with the bluest eyes Rose had ever seen came in and kissed Esme's head. "Oh, we have a visitor. I'm Carlisle Cullen." He gave his hand to Rose.

"She works at KDGM, she wants to know about the fire," Esme whispered.

At the same time, another man was coming in. As soon as he heard Esme he dropped the bag of oranges he was carrying. He was wearing glasses. This was Stephan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It seems we're about to get another side of the story. Believe me, these guys know so much!
> 
> Carmen will say many words in Spanish, so the translation will appear between *[]*
> 
> Now, for the first recommendation for today: Found footage/Mockumentary.
> 
> Grave Encounters (2011) For their ghost hunting reality show, a production crew locks themselves inside an abandoned mental hospital that's supposedly haunted - and it might prove to be all too true.
> 
> As above so below (2014) When a team of explorers ventures into the catacombs that lie beneath the streets of Paris, they uncover the dark secret that lies within this city of the dead.
> 
> The Poughkeepsie Tapes (2007) In an abandoned house in Poughkeepsie, New York murder investigators uncover hundreds of tapes showing decades of a serial killer's work. This one comes with a warning, it's quite disturbing and shows shocking images.
> 
> Troll Hunter (2010) A group of students investigates a series of mysterious bear killings but learns that there are much more dangerous things going on. They start to follow a mysterious hunter, learning that he is actually a troll hunter.
> 
> The bay (2012) Chaos breaks out in a small Maryland town after an ecological disaster occurs.


	21. Chapter 21

After an awkward introduction, Carmen invited Rose for dinner while they talked about their memories on KDGM.

"How did you meet Eddie?" Rose asked Carlisle.

"It was pure luck. My brother was in college at the time, and I was visiting him. I had the chance to hear Eddie and Jasper interviewing another student. I can't remember what kind of award the other kid won, but the way they brought out his answers without making him sound smug, well that required talent. Immediately I went and talked with them. I was lucky to find that was their last semester and offered them a job after graduation. They started making little segments around the state. We sent to local fairs, festivals, that sort of events."

"And they made the most of it. I swear they had a girlfriend in every county." Esme said, with dreamy eyes.

"I don't think what they had with those girls lasted enough to call them 'girlfriends', dear." Carmen corrected.

"But what about Bella?" Rose asked.

"Oh, she came by later. No, they were so successful that those little segments turned into a daily section, then, after I delivered a box full of fan mail to William, he finally agreed to give them an hour slot in the morning after the news."

"No darling, she wants to know about the emotional side." Esme patted her husband arm, "they had a bad experience. Well, Jasper had a bad experience. You have to understand, when they arrived at the station, they caused a commotion. Usually, the single young girls had two options: Bob from Sports or Jacob Black. Bob was a nice guy, but he was looking for something more than a hook-up. Jacob on the other hand,"

"Ese no dejó títere con cabeza," Carmen noticed no one understood. "Sorry, he didn't spare nobody. He tried to get every girl who came to work at the station."

"So imagine the day he found competition. Because you have to admit, Eddie and Jasper were very handsome." Esme continued, "and they were so nice. So the girls turned their attention to them. So one girl got Jasper's attention. Maria was clearly looking for a suitable husband. Jasper tried, but he didn't love her. Then you have to consider those two were a flirt. And Maria was so possessive."

"Possessive? That girl was crazy! First, she tried to get Jasper jealous by flirting with Jacob. There was some rivalry between the boys and Jacob, so he jumped at the chance to one-up Jasper. Then, when Jasper didn't fall, she pretended to be pregnant." Carmen told Rose, "but we advised Jasper and we took her to the doctor. She was so dumb to think we wouldn't find out she was having her period at the time."

"The break up was awful!" Esme cried, "she tried to taint Jasper's reputation, claiming he hit her. Then the next day she told Jasper she would kill herself if Jasper didn't come back to her. But the worst was when she cried to William that he raped her. Too bad for her that William knew about her exploits with Jacob when she tried to get Jasper jealous and all the gossip she was spreading, so William knew she was lying."

"So I did what I thought was the best: I went to her mother." Carmen was nodding.

"She left the next day and we never heard from her again." Esme ended with a sigh.

"So from that day, they only flirted, but never pursued anything with the girls at the station," Carmen added. "Until they met the girls."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, what do you think? There's still more these old guys are going to share with Rose.
> 
> Suggestions: Animal films, let's start with little creepy crawlers ;)
> 
> Arachnophobia (1990) A species of South American killer spider hitches a lift to the U.S. in a coffin and starts to breed and kill.
> 
> I looove this film! It meshed well scary with funny.
> 
> Phase IV (1974) Desert ants suddenly form a collective intelligence and begin to wage war on the desert inhabitants. It is up to two scientists and a stray girl they rescue from the ants to destroy them. But the ants have other ideas.
> 
> The photography in this film is awesome! They used takes in real ants and managed to make them scary. Very underrated.
> 
> Squirm (1976) A storm causes some power lines to break and touch the ground, drawing millions of man-eating worms out of the earth, and into town where they quickly start munching on the locals.
> 
> If you can't stand worms, then avoid this film.


	22. Chapter 22

"And how did they meet the girls?" Rose asked between bites of stew.

"It was so funny!" Carlisle almost choked because he found the memory so hilarious. Esme patted his back.

"I'm sure it was." Then she offered Rose a cup of coffee and Carmen picked up with the story.

"When the girls arrived, Rebecca brought them to us. She thought our show was the more appropriate for them. Jacob was supposed to be the one to introduce Bella and Alice, being the one in charge of new hirings. But he didn't even go there to gather the necessary paperwork. Apparently, he believed Bella was still the girl with pigtails and knobby knees. Not worthy of his attention. Rebecca was adamant we had to keep an eye on the girls. She made it clear they should be treated like family."

"But she was expecting us to keep them doing menial works. You know, 'pick my clothes from the dry cleaner', 'bring me coffee'. That was a waste!" Esme was back with everybody's coffee.

"Alice turned out to have a great eye and unbelievable fashion sense. I swear that girl predicted what would be 'in' the next season! And Bella was a goddess in the kitchen. They were a great asset to our show."

"We only disagreed when it was time to talk about relationships. We had a section where we gave advice."

"Bella just rolled her eyes when she thought our ideas where 'obsolete. She argued that I, being a divorced woman, should be more understanding. Anyway, at the end of the year, Rebecca was planning the Christmas special along with our Christmas party. She borrowed Bella and Alice for a couple of days, so when the day of the party came, we didn't make any plans with the girls."

"And the day of the party arrived. we were drinking, dancing. Eddie and Jasper were in their element, surrounded by people, telling jokes. Then Alice and Bella made their grand entrance."

Carlisle offered cookies around, managing to shut up Carmen and Esme.

"That was the funniest party ever. Jasper got mute. He was staring open-mouthed to Alice. And Edward wasn't faring any better. He chokes up with his drink. We watched how they virtually ran to the girls before any other of the guys had the chance to get closer." He said, smug for finally sharing that part of the story without interruptions. "Jacob came to us wondering if we knew who they were, and you can imagine his face when we told him she was Bella. He was another one choking with his drink. And they were joined at the hip since then. It also happened that the guys' producer had an accident, and they suddenly had an open position in their show. So I talked to Rachel Black, and we agreed that the girls would be a great addition to the show."

"Alice had superb planning skills, and somehow managed to get everything rolling in schedule. Meanwhile, Bella did research, wrote little recaps for the guys to discuss whatever topic they chose, they complemented the show making it a bigger success." Stephan finally spoke. "The only problem was that Jacob Black was suddenly smitten with Bella and well, she didn't return the sentiment."

"He sent her flowers, candies, little gifts that she always returned," Carmen added.

"And Jacob grew angrier with every rejection. I think the day he finally had enough was when he heard Carmen calling them Lalo and Chabela."

"Well, Eddie was 'Lalo' since day one." Carmen giggled, "there were another three Edwards working at the station! Of course, we needed to call him something different. And he asked me how do we call the 'Edwards' in Mexico where I'm from. I told him 'Eduardo', but around he said it sounded like the name of a gigolo, so I told him the nickname for Eduardo is 'Lalo', and so, we called him Lalo."

"And he said that name sounded silly!" Esme chuckled. "And he hated it until Bella told him it was a cute name."

"Then, of course, I told Bella how we called 'Isabellas' in Mexico. Then the name stuck. Lalo and Chabela." Carmen added. "Jacob was furious because I chose Bella's nickname as a complement to Eddie's."

"That was also the day he found out they were engaged." Stephan pointed. "You have to understand, William was pressuring Jacob to mend his ways."

"It was around that time that one of Jacob's conquest came with her father because she was pregnant, about to give birth. Jacob denied to ever meet the girl, but I knew he seduced her. I saw them leaving the janitor's closet so many times. William wanted me to dismiss the girl, but once the baby was born and looked just like Jacob, I settle an amount to give to the girl monthly. William almost fired me, but the other option was to face the father's fury and the scandal." Carlisle sighed. "William was blind to any of Jacob wrongdoings."

"So Jacob, wanting to get rid of his father's pressure, told him he liked Bella and was thinking to ask her to marry him. Well, William was ecstatic! In his mind, there wasn't a reason for Bella to deny his son, so he was sure Jacob and Bella would end up married." Esme shook her head. "Sadly, he was also blind to his daughters' pleas. Because, despite everything, Rebecca and Rachel loved Bella and despised Jacob."

"Those were some tense months. William blabbering about how Bella and Jacob's wedding will make all his dreams come true, breaking his daughters' hearts. Jacob desperate to make Bella break up with Eddie. And Bella and Eddie making plans for their future. Then, the big opening of the new wing arrived." Carmen sighed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What a chatty bunch! And Jacob seems to be just a waste of space. Next, we'll hear about the fire and the aftermath.
> 
> The recommendation for the day: Cats and dogs.
> 
> Cujo (1983) Cujo, a friendly St. Bernard, contracts rabies and conducts a reign of terror on a small American town.
> 
> The uncanny (1977) Wilbur Gray, a horror writer, has stumbled upon a terrible secret, that cats are supernatural creatures who really call the shots. In a desperate attempt to get others to believe him, Wilbur spews three tales of feline horror. Mind you, it's always avenging their beloved owners.
> 
> Cat's eye (1985) A stray cat is the linking element of three tales of suspense and horror.
> 
> The shadow if the cat (1961) A female house cat sees her mistress murdered by her husband and two servants, and becomes ferociously bent on revenge.
> 
> White god (2014) A cautionary tale between a superior species and its disgraced inferior - Favoring pedigree dogs, a new regulation puts a severe tax on mixed breeds. Owners dump their dogs and shelters become overcrowded. 13-year-old Lili fights desperately to protect her pet Hagen, but her father eventually sets the dog free on the streets.
> 
> This last one, I kept covering my eyes. I can't watch any mistreatment of animals. Though it is a powerful film, with a real-life happy ending for all the dogs in the film (I read they were strays that were trained for the film and finally got adopted, in real life), I don't think I could watch it again.


	23. Chapter 23

"Then, the big opening of the new wing arrived." Carmen sighed. "We were all dressed to the nines, there was a red carpet. Everyone who was important in Seattle was there."

"We all cheered when William cut the inaugural ribbon, had drinks and danced. But it was around dinner when everybody was seated to hear William's speech, that Stephan noticed none of the guys was there." Carlisle took a sip of his coffee and continued. "Then Rachel came to ask us if we saw Jacob. It was rumored that William wanted to give a big announcement regarding Jacob, and because of the hints and veiled comments William dropped around, we believed he assumed Jacob was on the verge of proposing to Bella, and probably wanted to give him a very public push."

Rose rolled her eyes, "He never took Bella's opinion in consideration, right?"

"Oh, no. He was sure no one would reject the paragon of virtues that was Jacob." Esme said with a bitter voice.

"So while we were searching our guys, we heard some sort of commotion. Turned out there was a little explosion and a fire at the old wing. By the time we managed to get over there, the firemen had everything under control but didn't let us in. We were so worried about the kids and looked in all the hospitals for them. By five in the morning, I found Jasper and Carlisle found Alice, but there weren't any traces of Bella or Edward." Stephan muttered. "Now, imagine our anger when in our search for answers, Carlisle found out William bribed inspectors, press, and threatened anyone who talked about the fire. There were people missing!"

Carlisle got angry, "The worst was when six months later I found William, since the night of the fire, was paying a room in a private clinic. I tried to dig more, but couldn't find who was the ill person. Then, out of nowhere, he calls me to announce the Halloween special: The hairy claw. Supposedly Edward was hosting it."

"Jasper felt betrayed. Poor thing only got a memo where William was giving him the news, and explaining that the show he and Edward hosted was canceled, though as soon as Jasper recovered he was welcomed to join a section in one of the weekend shows. Obviously, he quit and never wanted to get in touch with any of us." Esme shook her head. "And we let him because he had so much going on with Alice. All we knew was that once she finally got out of the hospital they got married, a big fancy wedding on her parents' state. Then through the grapevine, I heard she inherited a beautiful house here in Seattle from an aunt, but she never made the effort to talk to us and Jasper was adamant we kept out of their lives."

Rose was nodding. "Yeah, when I met Jasper Whitlock he seemed so bitter when I brought the topic of KDGM. But he was fine as long we talked about anything else."

"Yeah, but we didn't rest," Carlisle stated. "Since the first show, Stephan had called with a story, but he always talked to an assistant. It took him ten years to finally have a chat with Eddie."

"You know the first thing he told me," Stephan turned to look at Rose, "was to quit calling him Lalo. That from now on he was 'Eddie'. He said he didn't feel like Lalo anymore."

"Then I found the most disturbing news: the person supposedly in the clinic was no other than Jacob Black. So we wondered, what happened to Eddie and Bella? Well, when I confronted William he called security on me. We were banned from the station. So since then, we plan the whole year, we come with a theory and Eddie tell us if we're right or wrong. We still don't know what happened to him and Bella."

"I'm sorry to bring this, but on my last shift when you were talking to him, I noticed you were worried about Jacob." Rosalie blushed, it was obvious she was eavesdropping that private conversation.

Stephan coughed. "I knew someone was hearing us! But I'm glad it was you. We found out that the man at the private clinic was released a few years ago. I told Eddie. We don't know where is Jacob Black these days."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, what do you think?
> 
> First recommendations of the day: More animal horror films.
> 
> Just a comment: I tend to side with the animal (like in Orca (1977), King Kong (any version), Man's best friend (1993), Monkey shines (1988)).
> 
> The birds (1963) A wealthy San Francisco socialite pursues a potential boyfriend to a small Northern California town that slowly takes a turn for the bizarre when birds of all kinds suddenly begin to attack people.
> 
> A classic! You can't go wrong with Hitchcock.
> 
> Piranha (1978) When flesh-eating piranhas are accidentally released into a summer resort's rivers, the guests become their next meal.
> 
> There is also the remake Piranha 3D (2010) that I find funny.
> 
> Eight-legged freaks (2002) Venomous spiders get exposed to a noxious chemical that causes them to grow to monumental proportions. (Thanks imloki)
> 
> Infestation (2009) A slacker awakes to find himself weak and wrapped in a webbing; after realizing that the world has been taken over by giant alien insects, he wakes a ragtag group of strangers and together they fight for survival.
> 
> The fly (1986) A brilliant but eccentric scientist begins to transform into a giant man/fly hybrid after one of his experiments goes horribly wrong. (Thanks, sue1zide)
> 
> The original one (1958) and it's sequel 'Return of the fly' (1959) are good too.


	24. Chapter 24

Rose had to leave Stephan's house in a hurry. Seems that she was so enthralled by the conversation, that she barely had the time to make it to work.

"Just in the nick of time, eh?" Emmett joked.

Rose muttered an apology and took her place.

"Don't worry. It's been a slow night." Seth tried to cheer her, while munching on a bag of popcorn.

She offered the guys a sincere smile and then focused on the lap top in front of her.

xxx

The shift was slow, so from to time, Rose remembered bits of conversation.

'What about Eddie's family?' Rose knew Bella's parents were dead.

'He didn't have a relationship with them. When I met him, he told me that his mother died when he was fourteen and not a week later his pa brought his mistress and his ten years old half-brother. To add insult to the injury, the now step-mother molested Eddie and his Pa never believed him. So when he saw his chance to leave for college he took it and never looked back.'

Rose heard Eddie joking with the audience. Poor guy, his life was rough.

"Is everything fine, Rose? You seem a bit overwhelemed." Seth asked.

"Uh? Oh, no. Just a lot on my mind." Inwardly, Rose snorted. 'Just finding out the past of our DJ.'

xxx

Later, while a girl was telling the story of the ghost of her grandmother, Rose wondered how William managed to keep his daughters in the dark about Bella. Sure, it seemed Rachel and Rebecca didn't care about Jacob; but they loved Bella like a sister. And when Rose talked to Rebecca she clearly believed Bella was dead. Did William fake a grave for Bella? Did no one wonder why she disappeared?

"Rose!" Emmett called her.

"Yeah?"

"Someone left a note for you. Sorry, I forgot to give it to you." Emmett passed her an envelope. "I hope they're good news." He gave her his dimpled smile.

Rose took the envelope and opened it.

'Miss Hale,

I heard you were asking questions about the 1974's fire in KDGM.

I may have a few answers for you, so I request your presence at the 5B penthouse at 2356 Rotterham Road at ten o'clock in the morning.'

The message wasn't signed but certainly piqued her curiosity.

"Are those good news?" Emmett pried.

Rose answered him with a beaming smile, "Maybe they could the best."

xxx

So after a nice shower and a couple of cups of coffee, Rose found herself in the elevator on her way to the fifth floor of a luxurious building. Whoever sent the message was loaded.

The elevator's door opened and Rose found only two doors.

"Damn, this apartment must be really big."

She walked and rang the bell of 5B. It was opened by a nurse.

"Miss Hale, I suppose." The snotty nurse looked at Rose like she was beneath her. "Leave your shoes at the entrance. Then please, wash your hands on the bathroom to the left."

Rose did what she ordered and followed her to a double door. This was the moment, she could feel it. Who ever was behind those doors would finally unveil the mystery of what happened the night of the fire.

"Please, don't upset him." The nurse told her and opened the doors.

Rose walked in, to find a four post bed with a canopy. Machines beeped on one side. Who ever was laying on that bed was pretty sick.

"Good morning Miss Hale. I'm glad to finally meet you." The male voice was hoarse but clear.

Rose opened the canopy and found a scarred bald man.

"I'm Jacob Black, nice to meet you hun."


	25. Chapter 25

"I'm Jacob Black. Nice to meet you, hun."

Rose was shocked. In all of this mess, she never assumed Jacob would be hurt this badly. His face looked a lot like Freddy Krueger's, but still had eyebrows, then, of course, he was attached to an IV bag and looked like he never got out of bed.

Jacob shrugged his shoulders and sighed. "I didn't leave the fire in my best shape and time hadn't been kind to me."

"How did you know I was investigating?" Rose finally found her voice, though she only voices the first of hundreds of questions she wanted to ask.

Jacob chuckled. "Well, KDGM was my kingdom once upon a time. I still have my contacts around. Your questions raised many flags and I decided to talk to you before this little inquiry got out of hand."

"I don't know where to start. What happened the night of the fire? Why couldn't you leave Bella alone? How come not even your sisters know about your whereabouts?"

"That's simple. I asked Dad to spare Rebecca of any information of the fire. She was going through a lot at the time." He shook his head. "She had a gentle heart and chose a terrible husband. It wasn't necessary to burden her with this."

"And why didn't you leave Bella alone? Why Bella?"

"Ahh, that's a tricky question. I told you, KDGM was my kingdom. I did as I wanted. I hired the new employees so I kind of knew everyone. The girls tend to flock to me," he touched his face, "you may not believe it but I was a handsome man. Tall, strong. Women loved me. And I had my future secured, Dad never made it a secret that he was hoping to leave me the station. One day Dad comes and tells me that little Bella finished college and was coming back to Seattle. The last time I saw her, she still played with her dolls. So I told him to let Rachel or Rebecca deal with her, but he asked me as a favor to get her a nice job at the station. Too bad I got a hot date the day she arrived with her little friend, so I just delegated the job to my little aunt Carmen. She owed me as I was the buffer between my uncle and her."

"And what happened when you see her?" Rosalie wanted to hear it from his perspective.

"Ah, that Christmas party. The only reason I liked those parties was because free drinks make girls lose their drawers." He chuckled at his bad joke. "I was surrounded by my little harem, making them work for to win the right to warm my bed for the night, but it all went to hell as soon Bella arrived. She changed, a lot. She grew tits, a bubble ass, and those long legs... I had to make her mine first." He paused to take a sip of a glass with water. "But Masen saw her too, and that right there makes her more interesting. We had some sort of competition, you know. But he got to her first, so I let him and didn't make any fuss. But the next Monday I made sure to greet Bella, maybe dropped a few gifts on her desk. Could you believe she ignored me? Then, of course, I had to up my game. I asked her out, then tried to get her jealous, then put my sisters to work for me. But nothing helped me. Bella still rejected me. 'Eww! Jacob, I see you as my brother'" he mimicked a female voice. "Worst, Dad got wind of my interest and thought Bella would be the perfect addition to the family. He kept pushing and pushing. One day he finally told me that if I married Bella he would sign out the station to me, right away. By then my sisters already told him Bella was dating Edward, but Dad thought it was a harmless crush, nothing serious."

Then the nurse walked in to check Jacob vitals, glaring at Rose the whole time.

"Don't tire him. He's still a bit weak." Then as quietly as she came, she left.

Jacob chuckled. "She's afraid that I'm going to die. Then she would be out of a job." He pointed a chair to Rose. "I was going to say she was rude, but then I didn't offer you a seat or a drink either."

Rose sat and thanked him but said she was fine.

"Where was I? Ah, right. Dad wanted us married. Well, the new wing was finished by then, and we were planning the big opening. Dad came and told me he was going to make a big announcement at that party, that he thought I needed a push and he was about to give it to me. The crazy man even winked. Like I needed help in the women's department! The next day I tried to talk to Rachel, you know, to make her help me to calm down Dad. But she was the one who told me that Bella and Edward got engaged. The nerve of those two! Bella was supposed to be mine, and that little dalliance with Edward lasted too long. I was about to let Bella know my opinion when my father arrived. She hid her hand, not letting him see the ring and that's when I devised a plan. I let Dad make his plan, the rumors were wild around the time. Between Bella prancing around with her simple ring and the big announcement that everybody knew was about me, everybody was waiting for the day all blew up. Two days before the party, I asked Bella to see me on the old wing just before the opening."

Rose felt she was shaking with anticipation, finally, someone was about to tell her what happened at the fire.

"I already secured that the guards looking out for the old wing were busy at the parking lot. See, I wanted to get Bella alone. Then, when I got her all dolled up, I would explain to her what my father was about to announce: that we were engaged. Then she had two options: She would follow my lead and lie to the old man, she already had a ring so he would buy it. Or... if she tried to tell him the truth, then I would the betrayed lover card, and my father would fire her and Edward. Genious, right?"

Rose was shaking her head. How could he be so callous?

"Of course I also had another plan for her. If she still planned to tell the truth, well the old wing would be empty, right? No one to hear her scream when I took what I deserved. She was a tease prancing around with those little minidresses or those tight tops. She knew what she was doing by wearing them."

Rose couldn't believe how evil he was. "But then, how the fire started?"

"Oh, funny thing. There was option three: She was waiting for me with Edward. Imagine my fury when I saw him standing there with her. My plan to have fun with her went flying through the window. To add insult to the injury, when I told her what Dad was planning to announce, she showed me her hand. Now there was another ring: a wedding band."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, now we know Bella and Edward were married before the fire.
> 
> I'd like to apologize, I posted the previous chapter from a tablet and I wasn't able to paste the recommendations for that chapter, so now we have two sets of recommendations:
> 
> First, Italian horror. Nobody does gore and guts like Italian directors. Prepare for bizarre deaths, killer tarantulas and lots and lots of blood.
> 
> Suspiria (1977) A newcomer to a prestigious ballet academy comes to realize that the school is a front for something sinister amidst a series of grisly murders. (Dario Argento)
> 
> Bay of blood (1971) The murder of a wealthy heiress by her husband triggers a series of brutal killings in the surrounding bay area. (Dir. Mario Bava)
> 
> Demons (1985) A group of random people is invited to a screening of a mysterious movie, only to find themselves trapped in the theater with ravenous demons. (Dir. Lamberto Bava)
> 
> The beyond (1981) A young woman inherits an old hotel in Louisiana where, following a series of supernatural "accidents", she learns that the building was built over one of the entrances to Hell. (Dir. Lucio Fulci)
> 
> Then, the suggestions for ch 25:
> 
> The changeling (1980) A man staying at a secluded historical mansion finds himself being haunted by the presence of a specter.
> 
> The entity (1982) Carla Moran awakens one night to find herself being beaten and raped by an unseen presence. Terrified of what's happening to her, and shunned by friends and family who think she's lost her mind, she seeks help from parapsychologists. The researchers soon discover that evil spiritual force has been drawn to Carla and is responsible for the violent attacks. The question now, however, is how do they stop it? Based on a supposedly true story.
> 
> Goodnight Mommy (2014) The movie follows the complex relationship between twin boys and their newly-returned-from-the-hospital mother in a large isolated house. The boys begin to question the woman's identity, believing that she wasn't the same person as the one who went to surgery, and therefore wondering if she is, in fact, their real mother.
> 
> The wicker man (1973) A police sergeant is sent to a Scottish island village in search of a missing girl whom the townsfolk claim never existed. Stranger still are the rites that take place there.
> 
> Please, avoid Nicholas Cage remake. We all try to forget it ever happened.
> 
> xxx
> 
> I'm going to post the rest of the story today, but I know many will be busy with Halloween parties, or taking the kids Trick'r treating, so I want to wish you a happy Halloween!
> 
> PS: Then there will be three outtakes tomorrow.


	26. Chapter 26

Rose gasped. "A wedding band? how? When?"

Jacob chuckled, but it was a bitter sound, "It seems that little Bella was already planning to marry Edward, so with the pressure of Dad's announcement, she decided it was better to expedite the wedding. Imagine not only my surprise but my anger. If she told Dad that she married Edward, I was fucked. And there they stood, grinning to each other like it was the best day ever. Of course, I got angry. I don't know how many curses and insults I yelled, and all Bella did was shrug her shoulders. She dared not only to reject me but to spoil my plans. In my rage, I kicked one of the paint cans that were laying around." He sipped his water and then explained, "this was the place where the construction workers kept the remnants of building material. There were cans of paint, thinner, pipes, rolls of fabric. So yeah, I kicked a can and it opened spreading the paint around Bella and Edward. He called me a sore loser, with more insulting words. And they turned around to leave, I went mad. I saw a can of thinner and threw it, managing to open it. Bella turned back and said 'Jacob, you're an ass'. I just laughed and struck my lighter. She didn't see it, but Edward did. He tried to cover Bella but... I threw it, laughing, and then all exploded. I woke up three months later in a bed just like this one."

Rose shook her head. All the pain and suffering just because Jacob couldn't dealwithBella's rejection or stand to his father. "What happened to Bella and Edward?"

Jacob rolled his eyes. "They died, duh!"

Rose gasped. "But then, the show?"

Jacob glared. "They found a way, those fuckers... Miss Hale, do you believe in supernatural?"

Rose thought her answer for a second. Maybe a week before she would have laughed, but now, after all she had witnessed the answer changed. "I think I believe now."

"Well, somehow the spirit or whatever it is that is around of that fucker Edward, he convinced or blackmailed Dad to give him the show. One week every year, he and Bella host the show. The rest of the year... they haunt me. Not all the time, of course. But they like to parade their love, that not even death tear them apart. I guess it's my penance for what I did. Well, for what Dad did too. Dad covered everything so no one suspected I caused the fire. And for what? It took five years until my skin healed, the bit that is healed. I can't go outside with this pretty mug, right? And my legs never recovered, so I was never able to walk again. So I spent the last forty-three years in bed, hiding from the world. So Miss Hale, now that you have your answers, what are you going to do?"

xxx

Rose fell to sleep quickly. She was so tired after hearing the atrocious tale of the fire. She set her alarm so she would have time for a long bath before going to her next shift.

But her dreams were horrible. First, she recalled the McKinney story. Everybody loved Emmett's story, it was so sad he didn't want the prize. Then she pictured the girl that McKinney conned. There were many girls crying, brokenhearted and alone. And poor, the bastard took their money too. Then she pictured McKinney laughing claiming no one could stop him, but somehow McKinney's face turned into Jacob Black's face. The one he had in that picture on her phone, not the scarred he had today. Then the girls went crying to Caius, a faceless Caius, who in turn helped the girls by letting his sister play with Jacob, sorry, McKinney. Who could those girls go to complain about Jacob? Carlisle mentioned one got pregnant. But whom did she turn to ask for help?

Suddenly Rose woke up. She knew someone else who must know the truth. She needed to talk to Rachel.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The truth was revealed! So what do you think?
> 
> The recommendations for this chapter come from Miss imloki, Miss Moo Moo, and Miss sue1zide:
> 
> Re-animator (1985) A dedicated student at a medical college and his girlfriend become involved in bizarre experiments centering around the re-animation of dead tissue when an odd new student arrives on campus.
> 
> A cult classic!
> 
> Dead 7 (2016) A post-apocalyptic Western that follows a group of gunslingers as they look to rid a small town of a zombie plague.
> 
> Please, let your inner teenager scream yeah! Thanks, imloki :)
> 
> xxx
> 
> Prom night (2008) Donna's senior prom is supposed to be the best night of her life, though a sadistic killer from her past has different plans for her and her friends.
> 
> I'm also fond of the original one (1980), but this one let me ogle Mr. Kellan Lutz ;)
> 
> Silver Bullet (1985) The small town of Tarker's Mills was a place that was very peaceful, where nothing extraordinary ever happened until one night when murders began. The townspeople believe it's some maniacal killer on the loose whom they intend to hunt down. Marty, a young handicapped boy, believes the killer is no man at all, but a werewolf. After a run-in with the werewolf, Marty and his sister Jane hunt all over town for the man who is the werewolf.
> 
> Final destination (2000) After a teenager has a terrifying vision of him and his friends dying in a plane crash, he prevents the accident only to have Death hunt them down, one by one.
> 
> There are five films of this sage, and each one offers a unique way to die.
> 
> The strangers (2008) A young couple staying in an isolated vacation home are terrorized by three unknown assailants.
> 
> This one, I have to confess, I watched with my hand covering my eyes. It really scared me. Thanks, Moo Moo :)
> 
> xxx
> 
> Krampus (2015) When young Max and his family have an argument on Christmas he unknowingly summons a Christmas demon called Krampus who is the opposite of Santa and does come to spread joy he comes to punish the non-believers and now max and his family have to fight back against Krampus or Krampus will make them believe
> 
> The ring (2002) A journalist must investigate a mysterious videotape which seems to cause the death of anyone in a week of viewing it.
> 
> The only remake that I found scarier than the original.
> 
> Thir13en Ghosts (2001) When Cyrus Kriticos, a very rich collector of unique things dies, he leaves it all to his nephew and his family. All including his house, his fortune, and his malicious collection of ghosts!
> 
> And what a bunch of creepy fuckers are those ghosts.
> 
> When a stranger calls (1979) High school student Jill Johnson is traumatized over an evening of babysitting by a caller who repeatedly asks, "Have you checked the children lately?" After notifying the police, Jill is told that the calls are coming from inside the house...
> 
> A super creepy film with a scary ending. Thanks, sue1zide :)


	27. Chapter 27

Rosalie dismissed her long bath for a quick shower. She had to get early to the station.

She was lucky to avoid traffic, but she was unlucky to find that Rachel wasn't at her office. What to do now? She decided to kill time by wandering in the old wing. She wanted to see the remnants of the fire with her own eyes.

The way to the secret terrace where she talked to Rebecca was clean, meaning the janitor was here in the morning. So instead she walked to the opposite side. She found rusty chairs piled on the side along with old cardboard boxes. This hallway didn't have any pictures, only cobwebs, and dust.

She felt someone was watching her.

Rose took a few more steps into the hallway and she heard a faint voice calling her.

"Psst, psst."

She followed the sound until she got inside what must have been a large sized office, with four dusty desks and one giant but cracked window. There, standing behind a desk, was a young woman. A bit shorter than her, with long flowing dark hair and a blue dress. This was Bella.

"Hi." Bella greeted her.

"Are you..."

"Yes, I'm Isabella Cullen, Bella for my friends. Or are you talking about my not living status, because I'm really dead." She said chuckling.

Rose got closer, she reached out to touch Bella's arm, gasping when she found it was tangible.

"Not your usual ghost, right? Though I gotta say, how do you think Eddie and I can operate the equipment inside the booth, eh?"

Rose pondered for a second Bella's words. "I never thought ghosts could touch things."

"We're only like this for one week. Then we go back to our ethereal state. Funny, right?"

Rose pinched her arm, in hopes to wake up from whatever crazy dream she was having.

Bella laughed. "No, you're awake. I can imagine how overwhelming is this to you. I saw your note so I assume you already talked to Jacob."

Rose nodded. "He said you two died in the fire."

"We did. Though... look, if there's something I learned from the whole ordeal is that things happen for a reason. I'd like to think that your coming to work to 'The hairy claw' wasn't a coincidence. In more than forty years, you were the only one with enough curiosity to find out what was behind Eddie's legend. And if you think that just solving a mystery is enough, then I would be very disappointed."

"No, I don't think it's enough. But I'm sort of lost. After finding out that Jacob is alive, I was thinking that someone in the Black family must know. Someone is paying his bills. So I thought about confronting Rachel, but then, what? I mean, even if she confesses to helping him, what good would come out of it?"

Bella smiled. "Do you know what was my biggest dream when I was alive?" Rose shook her head. "I wanted to become a mother. I dreamed of little boys with copper hair and green eyes and girls with big brown eyes like mine, alas, it wasn't my fate."

"Maybe it was, but Jacob stole it from you."

Bella shrugged her shoulders. "It doesn't matter. For the first years, I hated Jacob and made a mission of mine to haunt him while he was at my mercy in the hospital bed. But after some time, all I got was more anger. I missed my best friend wedding and the birth of her daughter while feeding on that anger. Consider I could move to where she was and watch, even when she couldn't feel me. So with time and a lot of support and patience from my husband, I learned to not dwell in what I lost and value what I still have."

Rose found her words wisely but still didn't have a clue of what she wanted.

"Between Jacob killing us and William scheming to cover it, Ed and I lost also our friends. Whether it was miscommunication, anger, banning them from the station, we lost whatever contact we could still have with them. Just think of Jasper. All that resentment he bears for my husband, it weighed not only on him. Alice suffers for it and I swear Edward cries sometimes when he misses his best friend."

"Ahh."

"Yes, I think you're getting it."

"But how? Jasper doesn't want to hear anything related to him."

Bella beamed. "But Alice does. And that's why you're going to confront Rachel. She never wanted to be apart of the whole mess, only found out weeks before William died. Maybe you can convince her to lift a few bans and make a few calls."

Rose nodded, encouraged now that she found all her curiosity had a purpose. She waved goodbye to Bella and went to leave because her shift would start soon.

"Hey!" Bella called her. "After Jacob threw the lighter, Edward tried to cover me from the explosion. When I opened my eyes, Edward was unconscious, bleeding and barely breathing. Jacob was crawling on his way out. I couldn't move my legs, so I crawled to Edward finding a can of thinner half-opened. With my last energy, I threw the can to Jacob, knocking him. I made him burn. My last words were for my husband, I told him how much I love him." Bella winked to Rose.

xxx

It took Rose 'til the end of her shift to find Rachel. It seemed like her little inquiry disturbed another member of the Black family.

"... so I know you are aware of his actions." Rosalie shared all her findings with Rachel, giving her no room to argue or fake ignorance. To her utter surprise, Rachel broke down and cried.

"Of course I know! Dad told me it was my responsibility to care for my crippled brother. That bastard!"

Rose was shocked.

"Imagine what I felt. Not only he confirmed Bella died, but it was the way she did. And to know Dad made everything to cover Jacob's ass again. I slapped my father and stopped talking to him. But when he threatened to go to Rebecca I acquiesced. Dad told me everything, how the police found Jacob moved the guards out of the building, how the lighter that started the fire was his. He covered everything! And for what, the good name of the station?" Rachel sobbed. "You know the worst, he almost disowned me when I explained that Bella married Edward that same morning. I was there as a witness."

Rosalie was speechless. So Rachel must have loved Bella so much.

"All I asked him was to tell me what he did to the bodies. The idiot told me he buried them under the basement stairs, in a metal box. One box, because the bodies were entwined and so burned it was risky to try to pry one of the other. Rose, they died embracing the other."

Now Rose was crying too.

"What can I do?" Rachel asked between sobs.

"Well, I got a plan..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One more to go.
> 
> Because of the hour, I'll post it tomorrow. But I think I'm leaving the story in a good place :)
> 
> Second to last recommendations: Shock value/ ultra violence/ WTF? Warning: watch at your own risk. I admit I only watched these films once, and once was enough.
> 
> Martyrs (2008) Fifteen years after a horrifying experience of abduction and prolonged torture, Lucie embarks on a bloody quest for revenge against her oppressors. Along with her childhood friend, Anna, who also suffered abuse, she quickly descends, without hope, into madness and her own delusions. Anna, left on her own begins to re-experience what Lucie did when she was only twelve years old.
> 
> This is quite an experience, not for the faint of heart. Please, avoid the remake.
> 
> À l'intérieur (2007)  
> Four months after the death of her husband, a woman on the brink of motherhood is tormented in her home by a strange woman who wants her unborn baby.
> 
> Audition (1999) A widower takes an offer to screen girls at a special audition, arranged for him by a friend to find him a new wife. The one he fancies is not who she appears to be after all.
> 
> Eden Lake (2008) Refusing to let anything spoil their romantic weekend break, a young couple confront a gang of loutish youths with terrifyingly brutal consequences.
> 
> Funny games (1997, 2007, both versions are good) Two violent young men take a mother, father, and son hostage in their vacation cabin and force them to play sadistic "games" with one another for their own amusement.
> 
> Cannibal Holocaust (1980) In the beginning of this film we meet a documentary team of three young men and a young woman. They are heading for the South-American jungle to search for real cannibals. After a while, the crew is reported missing and a rescue team is sent from the US. This team gets in touch with an Amazon tribe called the Tree-people. The tree-people gives them the only remains of the first crew - the film rolls containing the material this crew shot during their search for real cannibals. Back in the US, we get to see these films. We now get to see exactly what happened to the first crew.
> 
> If you thought 'The Blair witch project' was the first found footage film, you were wrong. This one came almost 20 years before and caused a scandal. The director was arrested, the film was confiscated. There were rumors that the actors were really killed on camera, but the director proved the actors were alive. Sadly, a few animals were really killed in the film (and that's the reason why I never watched it again, but there's a version without animal cruelty). Despite the gore, the violence, and the poor animals, the film has a message about what we believe is civilized society.


	28. Chapter 28

"Do you know why they asked us to get here so early?" Emmett asked Rose, covering a yawn with his hand.

Rose smiled and messed with his hair. She was so nervous but also so happy. "It's a surprise. Just help me to set this room ready to welcome another eight people more. Oh, and maybe to broadcast from here. Rachel Balck wants to make the last show of the season go with a blast."

"Eight? Who? Wait, are we giving the prizes tonight? Because nobody told me and we have to get them,"

Rose stopped him. "No, it's something different. Now go and bring me more chairs. And a table."

Rose and Rachel's plan included a bit of help from Bella. She knocked the door to the booth and came out bringing with her a smiling Alice.

"We're here!" Bella greeted Rose.

"I knew you would solve it." Alice went and hugged Rose. "Now, let's just wait until my husband comes screaming and shouting for me."

"Do you think is a good an idea?" Rose still wasn't sure how Jasper would take the news of his wife having tea and cookies at KDGM.

"Is the only way I could think to get him here." Alice smiled. "It was very nice of Rachel Black to get her driver to pick me up."

"It's the least she could do," Rose argued outraged, while Bella left the room laughing.

"I think she was a victim too. Just put yourself in her place. She was overly intelligent since she was a kid and her misogynistic father always made sure she understood she was in that place until Jacob came to his senses. Which we know never happened." Alice joked, "but it must have been frustrating for her. She also was the one who helped to move the date of the wedding."

"Hmm," Rose still didn't know how to feel about Rachel.

"Hello, hellooo!" Seth chanted as he arrived carrying a table. "I was told to bring this table as a set of beautiful ladies was waiting for it." Seth winked at Alice who giggled at him. "I'm Seth Clearwater at your service, my lady." He said with a curtsy.

"You really know how to flatter an old woman," Alice answered, patting his arm.

"Viejos los cerros y aún reverdecen." *[old like the hills, and they still revive every spring]* Carmen arrived joking, but again, nobody understood her joke. "We, the elderly people, our age may well be old, but we still have the energy and capabilities to do many things younger people do."

"Oh." Seth and Alice exclaimed.

"Carmen?" Alice asked, standing from her chair.

"Mi pequeña Licha! *[My little Alice]* Carmen hugged Alice, and the rest of her group entered the room.

Soon, Alice, Carmen, Esme, Carlisle, Stephan, and some very confused Seth and Emmett were chatting and joking in the booth. They were enjoying the snacks brought by Carmen and Esme.

"Guys," Rose came back from whatever she was doing outside, "we are still waiting a couple of guests. Alice, I'm sure Jasper will be here any minute. Now, I know you're wondering why we asked your presence today," most of the group nodded, "so let me tell you that we're here not only to answer a few questions some of you have since many years ago but to correct a wrong that caused so much pain over the years."

Her explanation only meant something for Alice, as the others still didn't have an idea but as soon as Rachel and Rebecca Black arrived, Stephan's group started to get a clue.

Another five minutes spent in greetings when the two more important guests arrived... at the same time.

The door from the booth opened and Eddie came to wonder what was the reason for such fuss, at the same time Jasper barged into the room looking for Alice.

Both men walked until they realized there were surrounded by people staring at them. Then, slowly both lifted their sight, until they saw the other.

"Jasper?"

"Edward?"

For a second, Rose worried, but Jasper was so shocked to see that Eddie really looked the same. And when he was about to say something, Bella came out from the booth.

"Jasper! I'm so glad to see you."

Jasper just stood openmouthed. Bella also looked the same. At the same time, you could hear not only Seth's gasp but the murmurs of the others.

"Bella?" Rebecca went fast to Bella, trying to touch her to see if she was real.

"Rebecca!" Bella wasn't so shy so she hugged her old friend.

"But how? They told me you died!"

"I know, and I'll explain. Come take a seat over here." Bella let Rebecca sitting turning then to hug Rachel who was also crying.

Jasper was still speechless looking form Bella to Edward.

"Ok, now could someone please, explain what's going on here."

"Uhm, well, I bet some of you remember I was asking questions about the 1974 fire," Rose began her story, "well, with the help of all of you I found what really happened. There were many misunderstandings," she turned to Jasper, "a terrible crime that someone covered hurting many of you. So now, with the help of Bella and Rachel, I think we can explain what really happened that night, in order to clarify any misconceptions some of you still have."

And like that, Rose began with the story, explaining how William was pressuring Jacob, how Bella and Edward eloped causing Jacob's rage and in consequence, the fire. Bella smiled when Rose explained Jacob's health condition. Then Rose continued with William covering everything related to the fire to save Jacob's ass, leading to the lie he told Jasper.

"So he never offered you a new show if you canceled the one we had?" Jasper wondered.

"No, it wasn't like that. Our show was in standby, officially, until we were back to health. Obviously, that would never happen, but I sort of made a deal with William so he wouldn't leave you without a job."

"A deal with William?" Rose asked. That was unexpected.

Edward smiled. "I guess you need to hear my part of the story, right? Hmm, well, after the explosion knocked me out, I remained in the dark for a while. suddenly, I woke up. And it was so weird, I was standing in the same room of the explosion but everything was different. I saw people coming and going and screamed, but nobody heard me. I was desperate. Then, a ray of light came back, Bella found me." He kissed Bella's head, "and little by little she explained how she also woke up but somehow Bella managed to move around the old wing."

Bella chuckled. "It took us a while, but we were able to hear what was happening around us. And sometimes we tried to talk to the people passing by, but not everybody listens."

"One day, William came back to use one of the phones in what was his old office. Bella and I heard how he was calling a friend who was a Doctor to discuss Jacob's future treatment, joking how easily was to get him out of state because the stupid cops were eager to get bribed. Then William boasted about deceiving his daughters to accept Bella's death, how when he called my own father to explain the accident he immediately hung up as he wasn't interested, but what angered me the most, was when he explains his plan to not only fire anyone who began to question my whereabouts, but how he was trying to pin the whole incident to Jasper and Alice. I was so angry that I turned a desk and kicked a chair. William jumped scared. Then he saw me. Us. I told him we would never leave him alone if he didn't agree to our terms. That's how I managed to get at least a weekend stint for Jasper. But there was still the little problem of covering our deaths, and while he was sure to keep things quiet about Bella, I was a public figure. People were already speculating about my whereabouts. That's when we came with the idea of 'The hairy claw'. Initially, William would be operating the booth and I would do the talking, but, around that day, somehow we became more tangible. That's when we decided to let Bella and me work alone in this empty old wing."

"But how? Why? Did you see a light at the end of a tunnel?" Stephan asked.

Edward laughed. "Nope. As a matter of fact, nobody has explained a thing to us. It just happens. Will it end one day? Who knows!"

"But are you dealing with unfinished business? Completing any task you left undone?" Stephan still had more questions.

"No. We just don't know. We just woke up to this," Bella waved her hand around, "it took us time to move around. I only managed to haunt Jacob after months of trying."

"My brother is still alive?" Rebecca gasped.

"Sadly, yes. Sorry, Rebecca, you know I love you but when I woke up I was so consumed by hate towards him. And I'm afraid I used you too." Bella confessed.

"How? I don't remember seeing you."

"We didn't want William to leave without paying for what he did. So while you went to your terrace, looking for solace, I sort of whispered in your ear. We made sure to visit William, finding out what was ailing him, and I made sure you knew so you would push him to seek medical attention. I think we managed to get him to live enough to regret helping Jacob."

Emmett stood up and paced around his chair. "Are you telling me that 'Eddie the Vampire' isn't a vampire, but a ghost?"

"A-ha." Rose nodded.

"And he's really been hosting 'The hairy claw' for more than forty years?"

"A-ha."

"And that's the true reason why this wing remains abandoned."

This time Rachel answered. "Yes, I had to lie to Rebecca, making her believe I wanted to rebuild this wing. Otherwise, she would have started with the so-called museum. You know Dad only said he wanted to build a museum as an excuse to keep it abandoned, right?"

Everybody nodded. Now everything was clear.

"And what happens now?" Esme pondered.

"Well, firstly, we have a show to host, right?" Bella said smiling, "We thought it would be a good idea if this time, our guests share a scary story on air."

xxx

And so they did. Eddie and Jasper hosted the show, joking and smiling like they did in the past. They told stories, joked with the audience and by five in the morning, they all shared the name of the winners and said goodbye to the show for another year.

But this time was different, Rachel hired Jasper to host along Eddie. Bella and Alice made plans to have visits with Esme and Carmen. Emmett and Seth swore to keep the secret, knowing they would be a part of the team the next year.

Rose just stood proud, looking how the wrongs of the past, were amended.

As the show ended, everybody left the room. But this time it didn't feel like goodbye, it was a see you soon.

xxx

Bella and Edward closed the door of the booth and the room. Smiling when the reel of the station ads began to play.

"Well Seattle, we'll see you in a year with another week full of horrific stories. Prepare your fangs so you will join again Eddie 'The Vampire' in another season of 'The hairy claw''

Bella chuckled. "What a silly ad! Didn't they know vampires aren't real?"

And they walked laughing, hand in hand, while they vanished for another year.

The end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, what do you think?
> 
> I think I'll owe you the outtakes until tomorrow. For us, the kids come asking for candies today on 'the day of the dead' so I'll be standing by my door with the candies :)
> 
> Last list of recommendations:
> 
> The serpent and the rainbow (1988) An anthropologist goes to Haiti after hearing rumors about a drug used by black magic practitioners to turn people into zombies.
> 
> How I love this film! I prefer this kind of zombies, not those that eat brains, but the ones where someone is controlling you. And Bill Pullman looks really handsome in this film ;)
> 
> Siccîn (2014) Öznur is a young and beautiful woman. She has had a platonic love since childhood to Kudret, who is her cousin. Kudret, however, is married to a woman named Nisa and is very happy. Jealous, Öznur uses terrible black magic to change this so that she and Kudret will be together. However, she is not prepared for the evil that this spell unleashes.
> 
> Turkish horror! I've only watched a couple of films of this saga, but I found it so interesting and scary.
> 
> Bait (2012) A freak tsunami traps shoppers at a coastal Australian supermarket inside the building - along with 12-foot Great White Sharks.
> 
> None list is complete without a shark film. Now, this one may seem silly, but hey, Xavier Samuel stars it. How could one hate Mr. Riley Bears fighting sharks?


	29. Outtake 1: Jacob's last day on Earth

Outtake 1: Jacob Black's last day on Earth.

Blondie's visit really stirred some memories for me. Claire, my nurse, was upset because the visit rendered me tired. But what she didn't know was that for once, I felt alive. Just remembering those days...

When I told Blondie the station was my kingdom, I wasn't kidding. I was a God who determined who still kept his job or who lost it. Of course, I never got someone fired who didn't deserve it but still, my word was the law among the employees.

Girls flocked to me, always so eager to get on my good side. Sure, all they wanted was a promotion or a raise in their salary but who's to say I would give it after they so easily offered the goods? It wasn't like they could complain, my sisters knew better than to bother Dad with such inane topics.

Oh, there were the ones who wanted to catch the future owner of the station. Jesus, those were relentless. Meh, but after one only mistake, I made sure to keep those at bay. Better just play for a raise than for some sort of commitment.

Ah, but then Bella came back. She was superior in every aspect to any of the other girls. Too bad she had bad taste. She had to go and hook up with Edward. Then, of course, Dad felt it was time for me to settle down. Noticing my interest in Bella, he made it his mission to get us together, not that I minded, Bella was a nice piece of ass.

But she chose Edward. That was a mistake.

I made it my mission to show her what she was losing. I tried to shower her with gifts, she gave them back. I had the other girls praising my performance, there was no way Edward was better than me, but she still chose that looser. She didn't let me another option: I had to force her to chose me.

So whenever Dad asked, I told him she wasn't serious with Edward. He always believed me over my sisters. The first problem arose when she got engaged. How could I lie to Dad when she was prancing around with the ring? I had to lie again and tell her how angry Dad would get and how he could fire her or Edward. Dad helped, always making his opinion known, adding to the pressure.

But I guess he also grew tired of waiting and he told me he would make the big announcement at the opening of the new wing. What a way to light a fire under my ass! I made sure to leave the old wing empty and asked Bella to meet me there before the party 'to discuss how we were going to deal with my Dad'. Ha, I was so proud of my plan. But again, Bella went and did the unthinkable, she married the looser.

I was so mad! I know I kicked and screamed. Then the stupid fire happened. Blondie was the first person to hear my confession. By the time I woke up, Dad already dealt with everything. He told me my only job was to recover.

A few days later, I found Bella watching me at the foot of the bed.

"So you finally wised up and left the dork," I told her.

She only lifted one brow and glared.

"Well, you must be happy. You are already moving around and I'm here bedridden plugged to all these contraptions." I tried to convey how unfair it was to be like this.

Bella didn't say a thing. She just glared.

One of the cute nurses walked by but didn't get in to check me.

"You just wait, Bella, once I'm feeling better, I'm going to get that nurse to give attention to my neglected nether regions," I remember I tried to wriggle my brows, but it was painful.

Bella brought a mirror and put it in front of me. I had to admit I didn't have the chance to look at my face since I woke because the nurses took care of my personal hygiene.

I took a look, expecting to see my handsome face...

"Aaagh!" It was impossible! My face, one of the reasons women loved me, it was destroyed.

I turned to call Bella every name I could think of, but she was gone. The next day I found she was dead.

That was the first time she came to torture me. Sometimes she brought Edward, showing me how I was incapable to break them up, not even in death they broke apart. But the times she came alone, those were the worst. Bella had a cruel side and enjoyed to show me how I was just a waste of space. She made sure to show me how the nurses, whom I swore would gladly suck my dick if I asked, found me hideous and avoided to tend to me. I've lived without sex for forty-three years! Even an ugly one would do.

She blamed me for the fire, for her and Edward's deaths, for whatever happened to her friends. If she was honest, she was the one to blame. She only had to marry me, or not even that, just let me have my way with her.

"Mr. Black, it's time for your lunch." Claire interrupted my walk down memory lane. "Today you're having roasted chicken breasts with broccoli."

Puaff! What I would give for a hamburger! But my weak stomach can't handle the fat.

"Thanks, Claire."

When Claire left and closed the door, Bella and Edward were standing in front of me.

"Perfect! Just what I need today."

Edward, the jerk, gave me his crooked smile. He couldn't even smile like normal people.

"We come bearing news."

"Like I would care. You're dead, you can't do anything to me."

Bella laughed. "I know you had a friend of mine coming here to ask a few questions."

"Ah, right. Blondie is your friend now. What is she going to do? One call and I get the girl fired."

Now both jerks were laughing at me.

"Don't fret, this is our last visit. You'll be free from our presence in a few minutes." Bella told me. "We just came to say goodbye."

"Oh. Well, goodbye. Go and haunt another poor unsuspecting man."

"Right, well, I'll just tell you that Rachel and Rebecca now know the full story. So don't bother calling to fire anyone, as, since yesterday, you're on both women's shit list."

"And," Edward seemed too happy so it must be some bad news, "they aren't the only ones."

"So? I don't care. What could be worst to live here, seeing only these four walls, disfigured and crippled? Eh?"

They looked at each other and laughed.

"You're about to find out," Bella said.

Then I felt like I couldn't breathe. My lungs were on fire. Then, the strongest pain I ever felt, invaded my body. It hurt from the top of my head to the tip of my toes. And it wasn't the worst.

A black hole appeared at the foot of the bed coming closer and closer, engulfing my unmoving legs. That's when I heard it. A grave voice called my name.

"Jacob Black, you didn't show repentance from the sins you committed. You like to abuse the power you were given and enjoyed killing a loving couple. Now, you will feel their pain... forever!"

xxxx

"But he was in such a good shape for his age." Dr. Waddell lamented after covering the cold body laying on the bed.

"Well, he lasted too long if you ask my opinion," Claire answered, folding the soiled set of sheets that were covering said when she found him unresponsive.

"Was he a difficult patient?"

"Meh, he had his good days. At least he never tried to grope my ass, the night shift nurse had to sedate him to get him to leave her alone. He still believed he was a hunk." Claire sighed. "At least his friends managed to say goodbye."

"His friends?" Dr. Waddell asked. He knew nobody visited Jacob, he was the black sheep of the family.

"Yeah, a short young woman with a blue dress and one copper-haired man. They were the last ones visiting him."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, do you like what happened to Jacob? I know just being hurt wasn't enough.


	30. Outtake 2: The origin of Tweety Bird

Thirty minutes after the show ended...

"So Rose, now that you aren't so busy looking for answers, I was wondering if maybe..." Emmett didn't know how he was so nervous. It wasn't the first time he asked a girl on a date.

On the other hand, Rose was more confident. "Em, would you like to come for a cup of coffee with me?

xxx

Two months later...

"Rose, there's something I want to tell you..." Two months dating and Emmett still got tonguetied. He was so lucky to catch such a wonderful girl.

At the moment, they were about to welcome the new year and he planned to finally say the words.

"Really?" Rose knew something was bothering Emmett and she was nervous. She didn't want to lose the big guy with the heart of gold and the soul of a child.

The speakers roared...'5,4,3,2,1... Happy new year!'

"Rosalie Hale, I love you," Emmett said and kissed the hell out of his girlfriend.

When she ended the kiss to take a bit of air, she looked into his eyes and said: "I love you too."

xxx

Another three months later...

"Rosie, you make the best pancakes." Emmett loved Rose's cooking. Moving together was the best decision because nothing beat waking up with the love of your in your arms followed by a yummy breakfast.

"Thanks, baby. Hey, I was talking yesterday with Seth and he told me something funny that got me thinking." Rose sipped her coffee and asked Emmett. "Baby, why do they call you 'Tweety Bird'?"

Emmett sighed and his memory went back to the beginning...

_When Emmett McCarty was born, he was the cutest little thing. So his body was so tiny, he had the wildest blond hair, along with a big head. His Momma saw him and told his Dad "Look at my beautiful Tweety Bird"._

_x_

_Later on, when he was seven, he still had those blond curls that his mother loved. He was still small and thin and still had a big head._

_"Mo-om! Whitney is pulling my hair!" He was fighting with one of his sisters, again._

_"Mom, he called me four-eyes!"_

_Mrs. McCarty sighed. Raising seven kids wasn't for the weak. Least of all, when you had six daughters and only one boy._

_"Whitney, sweetie pie, what did I tell you about hurting your little brother?"_

_"But he's so so mean," Whitney whispered between sobs._

_"And Emmett, what did I tell you about making fun of your sister?"_

_"She was calling me a wimp."_

_"Both of you are on time out. Go to your rooms, no TV until I said so." Mrs. McCarty knew it was a fair punishment. At least she avoided..._

_"Bwaaahhh!" Emmett's shrill bawl almost made his mother cry too. She went to calm her kid, otherwise, she would end up with a headache. Why did he have that high-pitched voice?_

_"My Tweety Bird, you need to calm down. You know you hurt your sister."_

_"But she's so mean."_

_"Did hurting her made you feel better?"_

_"No." Little Emmett pouted._

_Mrs. McCarty hugged her youngest. "Who's my lovely 'Tweety Bird'?"_

_x_

_The summer between his Junior and Senior year, Emmett finally grew. Gone was the shrill voice, his hair darkened and his shoulder broaden. His head finally got the memo and remained on a proportioned size according to his 6' 4''._

_"I'm sure I'm going to lose that stupid name. Tweety Bird, my ass." Emmett laughed on his way to the mall. Lauren Mallory would be there._

_He arrived and strutted his way to the food court. Lauren certainly would agree to a date._

_"Tweety Bird? Sorry, Emmett?" Lauren beamed when she saw him. She knew he was vying for her attention, but her perpetual on and off boyfriend Tyler forbid her to look for his friendship. And he looked so handsome! Maybe it was time of break it off with Tyler for good._

_"Hi, Lauren."_

_But Tyler wasn't known for giving up easily or playing fair._

_"Look what the cat dragged in. The very Mr. Tweety Bird." He stood up to find Emmett was taller than him. "I tawt I taw a puddy tat" He mimicked the cartoon's voice making the rest of his gang laugh. Seemed like the nickname would stay, no matter how Emmett looked._

_x_

_Finally college! No one from his little town to make fun of him! While he walked to his dorm, three girls gave him their numbers and one groped his ass. This time he was going to make the best of college._

_x_

_Emmett had worked at KDGM for two years, achieving the reputation of a hard worker. His coworkers respected him and weren't surprised when the chance for a promotion arrived. He was commissioned to work with the elusive legend Eddie 'The Vampire'. Jared 'The Arrow' McHuntington chose him over twenty others. It was a welcomed privilege._

_Jared interviewed Emmett and after a few tricky questions decided Emmett would do. There was only one thing left._

_"While working at 'the hairy claw' there's a tradition to have a nickname. Any idea for one?"_

_Emmett asked time to think of one and Jared agreed. A guy as Emmett deserved a strong alias._

_When Emmett got home, he found an old lady sitting on the steps._

_"Mom?"_

_"Tweety Bird!" she jumped and hugged her youngest son_

_"What are you doing here? you should have called me. I would pick you up from the airport."_

_"Whitney dropped me. She's on her way to a spiritual retreat."_

_The next day, Emmett went to work only to find his mother with cookies... and the old photo album. He was fucked._

_"Tweety Bird, I was showing your friends your childhood pictures. Wasn't he the cutest baby?"_

_The damage was done. Jared loved Mrs. McCarty cookies and listened to all her stories, he loved more the little nickname. Emmett 'Tweety Bird' McCarty was born. ___

__xxx_ _

__Back to the home, he shared with Rose, Emmett pondered what to answer to Rose._ _

__"Babe, why do they call you Tweety Bird?"_ _

__"Hmm, ahh, I lost a bet."_ _

__xxx_ _

__Two months later..._ _

__"Do you think she'll like me?" Rose was so anxious. It was the first time she was going to meet Emmett's family. She didn't know who to fear the most, his six older sisters or his beloved mother._ _

__"They'll love you." he kissed her._ _

__Two hours later, Rose was sitting at Mrs. McCarty living room, laughing and chatting while having a cup of tea with her... and the damned old photo album._ _

__"Wasn't he the cutest baby? I gave him a little nickname and could you believe it stuck 'til today? I just found that they still call him 'Tweety Bird', do you want to know the story?_ _


	31. Outtake 3: The night they met

EPOV

October 28th, 2020.

"Well, it seems like we lost the call. Could it be a resented spirit?" Jasper joked. "While our experts work in recovering the call, I'll entertain you with a story. We all know, that when you get a pet, you find a friend that will be there for you unconditionally. Whether is a dog, a cat, a fish, or a horse, they'll love you forever." He stopped to take a sip of his water. "This is a story of a boy and his dog."

While Jasper entertained the audience, Emmett and Seth worked to recover the last call. The woman was about to finish her tale and now we would never know how it was supposed to end.

"Don't pout Lalo, it doesn't look good on you." Alice teased me. I still don't know how she manages to know what we are doing. Bella says she's a bit of a psychic and sometimes I believe her.

"But now, we won't know the end of her story," I told her and she smiled.

"The man leaves the traitor witch and runs back to his wife," she said nodding. "Trust me, I know." Now she was tapping her head. I told you, psychic.

It was funny how everyone seemed to fit, like pieces of a puzzle. After Rosalie Hale, sorry, McCarty made the effort to find out the truth and let us reconcile with our friends, we found that everyone had a place for him or her in this show. Jasper is great behind the mic, and the public loves him. Emmett, Seth, and Stephan are excellent dealing with the technical side and production. Rose, Bella, and Alice were excellent dealing with the social media and Carlisle was training Rose to deal with the advertising companies. All in all, I was so glad when Rachel backed up and let us run the show. She said it didn't matter because it was only a few hours every year.

"So you could imagine how taken aback I was when the call was over." Seth finally got in touch with the woman, and she was happily chatting with him, waiting for her chance to finish the story.

Alice elbowed me, making me realize I wasn't hearing Jasper and his sad story.

"They say the dog is still roaming there at the bridge. The dog protects any innocent that walks by from harm. In case you are wondering, there's a remainder in the bridge: a stuffed dog under a handwritten sign that says 'Beware of the dog'."

Emmett clapped and I followed, Alice was whistling and catcalling.

"Now, Miss Georgina Balmori will continue with her story. Welcome back Georgina,"

While the woman continued with her story, Alice stood up, making a few papers fall. One of them was a picture, one I didn't remember that was taken. It was the four of us, back in the 70s. Bella would blush and threaten to kill whoever took it, as she now hates those bellbottom pants.

I took it and sat back. And remember the night we met...

_December 21st, 1973._

_"I tell you, the best 'Enter the dragon' is the best picture ever" I was arguing with Jasper, who couldn't understand how someone could be better than James Bond._

_"No man, 'Live and let die'. James Motherfucking Bond is the best."_

_"But it is Bruce Lee doing karate!" I even faked a few kicks to show Jasper the awesomeness that was Bruce Lee, God rest his soul._

_"Meh. Anyway, I don't think any of our films will win."_

_That was true. Mr. Black announced that for the station's New Year party, he would show the film with more votes. The other contenders were 'The Exorcist', which we loved but we weren't certain to watch again so soon, and 'The sting'._

_"Hey, guys!" That annoying voice again. When Jasper started dating Victoria she brought her best friend Lauren to the mix, in hopes to get Lauren and me together. Nah-ah. It never happened though Lauren still has hopes. "Are you going to the Christmas party?"_

_"We are still undecided. We'll see." Jasper lied. After all the mess with Victoria, he was skittish, if not fully avoiding Lauren. He had the inkling that sometimes Lauren shared his whereabouts to Victoria leading to some disturbing notes he found on his desk._

_Lauren was disappointed, but she wasn't a quitter. "Perhaps if you knew about certain after-party at my apartment..." She tried to make her invitation sound sexy and enticing, but for the life of me, I never felt an ounce of attraction for the woman and her choice of friends didn't help._

_I shrugged my shoulders, I didn't want to be rude. "Sorry Lauren, we sort of have a previous commitment. We'll see."_

_We saw her march crestfallen._

_"You need to find a girlfriend to fend Lauren away." Jasper offered his not so wise advice._

_"I need a girlfriend? Why don't you go and find a girlfriend?" I pushed his shoulder. "I'm happy the way I am. Maybe if we leave the party early we can go to that bar by the apartment. It's always full of eager girls, I mean, it's been two months since my last, you know."_

_"He, he, he. One week." Jasper boasted. "I found a blonde at the bakery. She needed some sugar for her cookies." He wriggled his brows pointing to his crotch._

_xxx_

_That night at the party, Lauren was tipsy, and somehow that made her feel encouraged to follow me in hopes to get me to hook up with I avoided her._

_We found some security in numbers. Jasper and I were sharing our best jokes, our nastiest stories, just to keep a group of guests around us. Carlisle was teasing me and calling me a coward. He was adamant I needed to be more firm with Lauren. Esme and Carmen, on the other hand, weren't subtle about their distaste for the poor girl and made it clear since the beginning that Lauren was wasting her time. If only she would listen..._

_That's when it happened._

_Jasper was in the middle of a dirty joke about midgets. I was sipping my scotch when the lobby doors opened. Two women walked inside and I swear my heart stopped. I never saw anything like the beauty that was coming in. Long shiny dark hair, swirling around those flawless long legs. A porcelain skin with the deepest dark eyes and those pouty full lips. She left me breathless... literally. I was choking on my scotch._

_Once I was able to breathe again, I walked to her. Don't ask me what song the band was playing or who tried to stop me to get my attention. I had tunnel vision, I was only seeing her._

_"Good evening ladies," I greeted politely "welcome to the Christmas party."_

_"Ladies" Jasper was at my side. "Is there something we can help you with?"_

_Both girls giggled. The brunette with the long hair blushed and turned to look at me. "We're looking for Esme Cullen or Carmen Black."_

_"We work with them." The petite black-haired one added._

_"Oh, they must keep you hidden, those two." Jasper immediately took her hand, "otherwise I would remember such a beautiful face."_

_His words were followed by more giggles. Not wanting to be left behind, I took my little angel hand and kissed her knuckles._

_"I am Edward Masen, and my friend is Jasper Whitlock. We also work here but our show runs in the morning. I guess that's why we had never seen you."_

_"I'm Bella Swan and my friend is Alice Brandon." My angel said and I swore her voice was sweet like silver bells. And that blush, Ugh! She was going to be my perdition. "We heard of you, your show."_

_The funky beats of Stevie Wonder's Superstition were blaring and we asked the girls to dance._

_One song led to another, and then another. By midnight I was sure she owned my heart. This was the girl I would marry._

_"Hmm, if you don't mind me asking. Is that blond by any chance your girlfriend or something? It's just her glare makes me feel I'm invading her territory." Bella tried to get some distance between us._

_I turned to where she pointed and found an angry Lauren staring._

_"Please ignore her. She has never been something more than a nuisance. I can't even call her an acquaintance." I pulled her closer while the song changed to Elton John's 'Your song' started._

_I got lost in her brown eyes and whispered the lyrics into her ear._

_And you can tell everybody this is your song_  
It may be quite simple but now that it's done  
I hope you don't mind  
I hope you don't mind  
That I put down in words  
How wonderful life is while you're in the world 

_"Thank you for a wonderful night."_

_"Oh, my sweet Bella. I believe this is only the beginning!" ___

__I chuckled at the memory, while Alice threw me a balled paper sheet. "Shh! It's your turn at the mic. I don't know what's going on with you. You really need Bella to keep you in line." That's when she felt the picture in my hands. "Oh, you're nostalgic. Well, I really, really hope it isn't that horrible picture when I let Esme make my hair."_ _

__That's when I laughed. Why do they hate the picture so much? Sure, those bellbottoms now seemed laughable, and Alice's ten thousand curls up-do belonged to a Maria Antoinette wig, not a young woman's hair, but mine and Jasper's long mops were outrageous too. And our polyester light blue suits were the butt of so many jokes. Still, those were the days._ _

__"Where's Bella?" Emmett interrupted our banter. "I can't find this guys song and the commercial break it's almost over!"_ _

__The door of the booth slammed open, Bella appeared and ran to deal with the song, not before winking at me. "Which one?"_ _

__She and Emmett discussed in whispers and he left the room on a whim, while my sweet wife messed with the equipment and got the song ready._ _

__While the funky beat of 'Superstition' serenaded us, Bella hugged me and smiled. "Does it bring some memories to you?"_ _

__If she only knew..._ _

__Bella got closer and whispered, "I bet you that Emmett it's going to faint in ten seconds."_ _

__In that moment Emmett came back with a pale Rosalie._ _

__"No, Rose is the one who looks about to pass out."_ _

__Bella beamed. "You'll see."_ _

__Rose took some white stick from the front pocket of her hoodie, Emmett gave it a look and fell down, like a log._ _

__"How did you know?"_ _

__"I took Rose to the bathroom, she was so nervous to take the test alone."_ _

__I turned to Bella. "Test?"_ _

__She nodded. "She's pregnant. Next time we're here there'll be a little Emmett or a petite Rose around here."_ _

__For a second I worried, the subject of a baby still bothered her from time to time. But after watching her beaming smile, I knew we would be fine._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Well, this is the end. What do you think?
> 
> I'd like to thank all of you for joining me in this journey, it was fun to share not only the story and your opinions but now I got a few films to add on my 'to watch' list.
> 
> I took a couple of days to post because there were a few more films suggestions some of you sent and I really wanted to share them with you. Here they are, the last recommendations:
> 
> The hills have eyes (1977) On the way to California, a family has the misfortune to have their car break down in an area closed to the public, and inhabited by violent savages ready to attack.
> 
> I spit on your grave (1978 & 2010 both versions) An aspiring writer is repeatedly gang-raped, humiliated, and left for dead by four men whom she systematically hunts down to seek revenge.
> 
> This one will make the males nervous if you watched it you know in which scene ;)
> 
> Wrong turn (2003 and sequels) Six people find themselves trapped in the woods of West Virginia, hunted down by cannibalistic mountain men grossly disfigured through generations of inbreeding. (Thank you Moo Moo)
> 
> The blob (1958 & 1988 ) a deadly blob from another planet which consumes everything in its path. Teenagers attempt without success to warn the townspeople, who refuse to take them seriously.
> 
> The scene with people running from the movie theatre while the blob is pouring from the doors is a classic.
> 
> Creepshow (1982) Five tales of terror are presented. The first deals with a demented old man returning from the grave to get the Father's Day cake his murdering daughter never gave him. The second is about a not-too-bright farmer discovering a meteor that turns everything into plant-life. The third is about a vengeful husband burying his wife and her lover up to their necks on the beach. The fourth is about a creature that resides in a crate under the steps of a college. The final story is about an ultra-rich businessman who gets his comeuppance from cockroaches.
> 
> A classic! (Thanks, Eve)
> 
> These are TV series:
> 
> Channel Zero (2016-) An anthology series based on popular Internet Creepypastas, including Candle Cove, The No-End House, and The Search and Rescue Woods.
> 
> I still haven't watched it, but the teeth creature from season one scares me. Come on, google it and tell me it isn't creepy. (Thanks, Eve)
> 
> In the flesh (2013 -2014) Four years after the Rising, the government starts to rehabilitate the Undead for reentry into society, including teenager Kieren Walker, who returns to his small Lancashire village to face a hostile reception, as well as his own demons.
> 
> I loved this series! A different zombie tale.
> 
> And since we're talking zombies: Z nation (2014 -) Three years after the zombie virus has gutted the United States of America a team of everyday heroes must transport the only known survivor of the plague from New York to California, where the last functioning viral lab waits for his blood.
> 
> What can I say? It's quirky, it's gory, it's funny. And I swear, after watching season one, you'll never picture Michael Newton as a wimp again ;)


End file.
